The Curse of Time
by Starr Dust
Summary: Jack and Will parted ways years ago, but when the two reunite after five years apart, Jack realizes that he should have never let him go. Slash, Mpreg
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.  
**Warnings:** AU, Mpreg, Drama, Angst Author's Notes: Slight spoilers for Dead Man's Chest, but nothing major since this story takes place five years after the events of the trilogy (also, no spoilers for PotC 3 either).

**Chapter One**

Jack needed a sword. The one that he had been carrying for years, much like him, was starting to show its age and lose its luster. The blade didn't cut like it used to and it was starting to rust. Then one day, during a raid on a merchant vessel, the damn thing actually broke! That settled it in his mind. He would have to get a new one and although it would have been easier to just steal one, for some reason Jack felt like just getting one made for him. Maybe he'd "forget" to pay the smith for his services afterwards.

Jack had given the order to make birth at the nearest port they could find and allowed the crew to go on shore leave while he searched the town for a decent sword smith. As soon as he had stepped into the town, he was instantly greeted by questioning looks and frightened whispers and the pirate knew instantly that this wasn't a pirate friendly port. He didn't mind really, he had always enjoyed the attention that his appearance and mannerisms granted him and even with a broken sword on his belt, he was still feeling quite confident in himself.

His search was interrupted, however, when he felt something small and wooden being pressed against his the back of his leg. Jack paused in his quest at the feeling. He knew instantly that there was no threat involved in the gesture, he could tell right away that it was a young child that had come up to him. He was merely surprised that some young whelp had actually dared to come up to him. Most children knew right away from the sight of him that he was a pirate and stayed as far from him as possible, but this one...

"Avast pirate!" a small voice cried, poking him even harder with the wooden object. "What brings the likes o' ye ta _my_ port?"

Oh dear lord, just what he needed, a young whelp who thinks that he can take him on. With a loud exaggerated sigh, he turned around and looked down at the kid, ready to scare the boy straight, but stopped dead when he got a good look at him.

Standing there before him was the spitting image of William Turner. From the tips of the boy's golden brown curls, to the way he held his little wooden sword in his hand. Even the way his brow was furrowed looked just like Will!

Jack hadn't seen Will Turner in years and the two hadn't exactly parted ways in the best of terms. The last time Jack had spoken with the young blacksmith, the whelp had all but spat at him he was so furious. The pirate had seen the hate glowing in his brown eyes and felt it radiating from his body. Jack could still clearly remember their last conversation and the fact that Will was convinced that Jack had tried to steal his fiancée. It wasn't true of course. Jack had no real interest in Elizabeth Swann. Of course the young woman was easy on the eyes, but the pirate had his sights set on other things at the time.

Last Jack had heard of Will, the boy had gone back to Port Royal, not to marry Elizabeth, but to gather his belongings before disappearing completely. Jack had considered looking for him, but he knew that the lad wouldn't want to see him again anyway.

The pirate felt his jaw fall open as the boy continued to stare him down. "Avast!" the boy repeated, waving his wooden sword menacingly.

Jack frowned, shaking his head slowly. This couldn't be Will's child! He was too old! The lad looked as if he were five or six years old and Will had disappeared five years ago. He would have had to act quickly in order to father a child this age. It was pure coincidence that this kid looked so familiar.

Bending down, Jack grasped the boy by the wrist, stopping the child's assault on his leg. "Now dat's not very nice," Jack chided, flashing his gold teeth at the boy and playing up his pirate speech to almost comical proportion. It may seem silly to adults, but it was frightening to children. "Is dat how ye go 'bout greetin' everyone ye meet?"

The child, however, seemed unaffected by the man's act as he frowned up at him stubbornly. "You're not 'everyone' you're a _pirate_," the boy countered.

Jack had to laugh. Normally, he didn't care much for children, but this whelp certainly was amusing. "Can't deny that," Jack said.

"Unhand me!" he cried dramatically, waving his sword around threateningly. Jack was starting to wonder if the boy thought that he was playing along with him or not. "Or I'll see ye hung by the day's end!"

"Dear lord!" Jack gasped playfully. "Now, I'm truly frightened. But if I let ye go, then ye'll have me hung anyway."

The boy frowned, seeing Jack's point, he then leaned forward, and whispered "I'm not really going to hang you Mister. It's just a game."

It took everything Jack had in him to keep from laughing at the boy's words. "I didn' realize," Jack whispered back as he let go of the child's wrist. "Ye played the part of pirate hunter quite convincingly."

This seemed to please the boy greatly, as he puffed out his chest with pride and tucked his sword away in his belt. "Thank you!" he said happily. "But I don't really want to _hunt_ pirates, I want to _be_ a pirate. Don't tell my Daddy though, he _hates_ pirates."

Jack felt his ears perk up at that comment. "What's yer name lad?"

"Nathan!" Jack frowned as a young woman came running towards the young boy in front of him. She quickly gathered the child into her arms in alarm and fright, making sure to keep him a good distance away from Jack. "Don't wander away from me like that! You gave me such a fright!"

"I wasn't doing anything wrong!" the boy, Nathan, frowned, kicking the air wildly as he struggled to get free. "Let go! I can walk!"

The woman frowned as she placed him back down on the ground, but continued to drag the boy away. It was clear from the displeased frown on Nathan's face that he didn't like the woman and from the brief glimpse Jack caught of her, he could tell they weren't related since they looked nothing alike.

-+-+-+-

Jack had spent the rest of his search for a decent sword smith thinking of Will Turner and the boy who seemed to look so much like him. He walked around the small town in a haze, as he mentally compared the image of the young boy and the blacksmith. As far as Jack could tell, the only difference between the two were their eyes. Will's eyes were a rich chocolate brown, while the child's eyes were much darker, almost black in appearance. It was obvious that the lad had gotten that trait from his mother, whoever she was. It certainly wasn't the woman who had dragged him away. She looked nothing like the child. She was pretty enough, with her sandy brown hair and grayish green eyes, but there was a plainness about her that did not match the child's appearance.

Jack groaned, shaking his head fiercely in an attempt to erase the thoughts in his head. What was he thinking? Just because the child looked a bit like Will didn't mean that this was necessarily Will's son. The boy's father or mother could have had similar features, or the combination of both could have produced an offspring that just _happened_ to resemble Will.

_"Don't tell my Daddy though, he_ hates _pirates."_

Coincidence! It was merely a coincidence! A _lot_ of people hated pirates after all.

_I need a drink,_ Jack sighed. He felt like washing the idea of Will out of his mind. He had to admit that the thought of seeing Will Turner again brought a smile to his face and a strange feeling in his chest. He wasn't exactly sure what would come out of a meeting with the younger man, but just to see him alive and well again would make him feel... better. For some reason he had the feeling that Will had been in some type of danger since Jack was no longer there to look after the whelp and keep him from doing stupid things from time to time, but he had to remind himself that Will was a grown man now and could properly look after himself.

The pirate stopped short in slight surprise when he realized that he had wandered over to a smithy. He squinted as he looked at the name hanging above the door. _Hobbs's Smithy_ was all it said. Jack frowned as he reached down and felt the hilt of his sword. He wondered if they made blades anywhere near as good as Will Turner's.

With a reluctant sigh, Jack entered the small shop, bracing himself for the pounding in his head that would result from listening to the clang of metal on metal, a sound that was already painfully clear from the other side of the door. Sure enough, once he set foot inside, his ears began to ring and his head pound as the man in front of him worked the hot metal in his hands.

Jack surveyed the shop with a weary eye. Kettles, pots, and other such goods fashioned from metal were on display around the forge, but none of them looked like anything remarkable. He was slightly disheartened to find that there weren't any swords on display. Perhaps he should just go back out and forget about the order he was about to place.

He didn't even get the chance to turn and leave when the young smith put down his project and turned to greet him. "How can I help you?" he was about to say, but his words faded away somewhere after "can" when his eyes locked with the pirate standing in front of him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures. 

**Chapter Two**

There he was. William Turner, standing before him. He was slightly bigger then the last time he had seen him, a little paler, and a bit more worn. Yet there was something about him that seemed more mature, more confident, and a lot less foolish. He seemed quite grown up and sure of himself, and Jack couldn't help but feel a bit old himself just by looking at the boy.

_No. Not a boy,_ he thought forlornly. _Not anymore._

He had changed, he had grown up, and yet it was clear that he was still very much mad at him. He could see the anger flaring in the young smith's brown eyes. His fists were tightened and his lips were pressed into a thin line.

"What are you doing here?" he all but demanded.

Jack had to resist the urge to groan at the blacksmith's words. He had had a feeling that Will wouldn't be happy to see him again, but a part of him had at least _hoped_ that the boy wouldn't be still so... touchy.

"Now honestly, is this how ye greet a payin' customer?" Jack asked, a smirk crossing his lips in spite of himself.

Will obviously didn't seem to see the humor in the situation as he all but stalked over towards him, a dangerous look on his face. "You are not a customer; you are an intruder, now _get out!_"

_That was quick,_ Jack thought. Five years apart and Will didn't even want to as much as look at him. The lad didn't even give him enough time to explain why he was there (or that it was merely a coincidence that he had walked into his store).

"Will," Jack began calmly, but he was interrupted by someone slightly unexpected.

"Daddy!"

Both Jack and Will turned towards the door as a small figure ran inside and latched himself onto Will's leg. It was the boy from earlier! Jack stared at the scene in shock as Will calmly picked the boy up and held him in his arms. The child wrapped his arms around Will's neck and buried his face into his shoulder.

"Daddy, Sarah's being mean again!" he whined.

"I was not!" a voice cried and Jack wasn't too surprised to see the girl from before come running in after the child. She ran past Jack, seeming not to notice him at all, and towards Will. Her face was flushed red from running and she was breathing heavily.

"What happened now?" Will asked in a slightly exasperated tone.

"He ran off again!" the girl, Sarah, said quickly. "I was taking him for a walk, just like you asked me to Mr. Turner, when he just decided to wander away from me!"

"That's because you were being boring!" the boy shot back, sticking his tongue out at the girl, before turning back to Will with wide pleading eyes. "I asked her to go see the ships, but she kept saying no. I said I would be good, but she just-"

"Nathan," Will chided, cutting into his son's rant, "you really shouldn't run off like that."

"But-"

"Do you know how upset I would be if something happened to you?" he asked softly, running his hand over the child's hair.

The boy, Nathan, pouted at his father's comment, clearly sensing that he was indeed defeated. His eyes began to wander, as if looking for some sort of support for his case, before finally landing on Jack. Nathan's face instantly lit up at the sight of Jack. "Look, Daddy, a pirate!" the boy cried, happily pointing in Jack's direction.

Jack had merely been silently watching the whole scene play out before him in muted shock. He was right! He had been right about everything! This _was_ Will's child, and that girl was _not_ his mother! Then who was she? Who was this boy's mother? Had Will had an affair with someone besides Elizabeth? Was this child Elizabeth's? No, that couldn't have been it. If Will had gotten Elizabeth pregnant, then they definitely would have been married by now, whether they wanted to or not. Luckily, Jack had recovered himself just in time for Will and the young girl, Sarah, to turn and stare at him.

Sarah merely gasped and took several frightened steps backward. Jack could only imagine what the lass was thinking, but he didn't really care to, he was too busy focused on Will's face. There was an unidentifiable look on the younger man's face as he held his son protectively in his arms. If Jack didn't know any better, he would have said that Will actually looked a bit scared, but the younger man had no reason to be afraid of him. He certainly didn't seem scared a few minutes ago.

"Hi!" Nathan said brightly, waving his hand at Jack wildly as if to both greet him and get his attention. It worked.

Jack smiled as nicely as he could manage and waved back at the boy. He liked the kid for some reason. He seemed smart for a boy his age and was quite entertaining. "'Ello lad," Jack greeted. "So we meet again, eh?"

Will's face paled slightly at Jack's words. "How do you know my son?" Will all but demanded.

"That pirate attacked him!" Sarah cut in, coming up behind Will as if to use him as a shield from Jack.

Jack blinked in surprise. Attacked? If he remembered correctly, Nathan had been the one swatting at his leg with a wooden sword. If anything, the child had attacked _him_.

"That's not true!" Nathan said. "We were playing!"

"It's true," Jack cut in, doing his best to smile disarmingly. "This young whelp was threatin' ta have me hung."

Will frowned at Jack's words, before turning to the young woman standing behind him. "Sarah, take Nathan home," he told her as he handed the boy over to her. "Make sure he stays in his room. I'll deal with him when I get back."

"But Daddy," Nathan began, but was cut off by Will's harsh look.

"I'll speak to you at home," Will said firmly.

With that, Sarah took the boy home, hurrying past Jack as if he would try to grab her if she didn't get away quickly enough. Jack smiled as Nathan waved back at him as he was carried away, a sad look etched on his young face. The pirate couldn't help but laugh. Will Turner had become a father. He had always figured that the boy would have couple of kids by now, but he had also pictured him married by now. He turned back to Will, who was currently frowning at him menacingly. A brief glance to his hand revealed to Jack that there was no wedding band on his finger and that the boy was indeed single still.

"Nice lad," Jack commented, referring to Nathan. "He seems smart. Probably gets that from his mum."

Will winced slightly at the mention of Nathan's mother. Clearly something terrible had happened to the woman or the two had had some sort of falling out. "What do you want?" he demanded rather than asked.

Jack smirked. "Straight to the point, eh?" he joked, but Will didn't so much as flinch at his comment (not that he had expected him to). "I need a new sword," Jack explained as he pulled out his own broken one. The sword was only about two and a half inches long before it broke off at the end, leaving only a jagged razor. "I came here lookin' for a blacksmith ta make me a new one, looks like I lucked out eh?"

Will's frown deepened. "I don't make swords anymore."

Now it was Jack's turn to frown. Will didn't make swords anymore? That just didn't seem to make sense, although it did explain the absence of them around the forge. "I see," Jack said, and he did see, for anyone would be able to see that he had given up the craft of sword making and had taken up making lack luster everyday goods that were just good enough to get by. "But is there anyway that I can convince ye ta make just one more?"

"That wooden sword that Nathan carries was the last one I made and it shall stay that way," Will said flatly.

Jack nodded thoughtfully. Of course Will was being stubborn about this. This was Will Turner after all. That aspect of him would never change. "I could pay ye o' course."

"I wouldn't take your dirty money," Will scoffed.

"Not even with a young son ta feed?" Jack smirked.

Will visibly tensed at Jack's words, his body practically shaking with anger. "Don't you _dare_ talk about my son," he half growled, pointing a finger at him menacingly. "You don't talk about him, you don't talk to him, and you don't even _think_ about him!"

Now Jack was shocked. Where had all that come from? He had made one comment and Will acted as if he had said that he wanted to kidnap the whelp. It seems that the stick up Will's ass had doubled in size after having a child. He wasn't going to back down however. Jack was going to get his sword and he was going to get Will Turner to make it for him, no matter what the younger man thought.

"That might be a bit difficult since I'll have ta get me sword made one way or another," Jack began slowly. "Tell me, lad, are there any other blacksmith around here that can make a sword as good as yerself?"

Will sighed, clenching and unclenching his fist as he stared the pirate down. "No," he said honestly. "I'm the only blacksmith in town."

"Well that certainly must be good for business," he said. Why else would everyone buy such garbage? It seemed that Will's only real talent was in making swords and nothing else. "Then I guess ye're stuck with me."

"Why should I take your order?" Will snapped. "I have other, honest, costumers to tend to and more important orders to fill."

"Ye call makin' a bunch o' bloody tea kettles an' chamber pots important?"

"I don't make swords anymore!" Will said through gritted teeth.

"The sooner ye do, the sooner I'll be gone," Jack said simply.

"Or you could just leave and find someone else to make your damn sword."

"They wouldn't be as good as ye whelp. I want the best, an' ye're the best."

Will said nothing. He merely folded his arms across his chest as if waiting for Jack to continue. It was a slight improvement over trying to kick him out, but not as good as actually accepting the damn order.

"I'll make ye a deal," Jack offered, "ye make me this sword an' I won't come by the shop until it's finished. That way, I won't be near dear little Nathan."

Jack half expected to get a tongue lashing from merely mentioning the boy's name, but instead Will merely sighed in defeat realizing that he had no other choice in the matter. "I want payment up front," Will told him. "I won't do anything until you give me my money."

"Alright."

"And once the sword is done, you most leave and never come back."

That's a bit harsh. Something was wrong. Will wasn't just mad at Jack, he was mad at the fact that the pirate had found him. It suddenly dawned on Jack that Will might be hiding from someone. That could explain the name on the door, since Will was far too old to be apprenticing anymore.

"Alright, we have an accord," Jack said, sticking out his hand for Will to shake. Will merely frowned at it before turning to go back to his work. "I'll have your sword done in two days. After you pay me."

Jack frowned. "O' course," he smiled as he made his way towards the door. "One more thing, lad," he began as if he had just remembered something. Will turned to look at him, an irritated look on his face. "Did ye change yer name?"

Will blinked and stared back at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"The sign on the door says 'Hobbs'."

Understanding dawned on Will's face as he turned back to his work. "That's the name of the man who owns the shop," Will said simply before continuing his work. He seemed to be making twice as much noise then usual, so Jack merely shrugged and left. Better to let the whelp work out his problems then get a headache for no reason.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Three**

So William Turner had a son. A little boy who looked just like him. Those Turner men had a tendency of always looking the same it seemed. He was just glad the boy hadn't named his son "William Turner III".

Jack smiled slightly as he headed over to Will's forge, or rather _Hobbs's Smithy_. He wanted to see the younger man again. Maybe this time he could get a bit more information out of him. Like where Nathan's mother was and why was it that he didn't want anyone to know where he was.

Before he could get to the forge, however, he was surprised to see little Nathan sitting outside on the footsteps of a modest sized home. The boy had a sad look on his face as he used the tip of his toy sword to draw pictures in the dirt. Jack frowned, remembering how Will had so animatedly warned him not to go near his child. He acted as if Jack would do something horrible to the child if he went near him, but what was there for Jack to do? The child was already obsessed with pirates and had a tendency to run off when no one was looking. It wasn't as if Jack could do any more damage to the whelp.

Jack sighed as he walked up to the child, feeling a bit guilty despite the fact that he wasn't really doing anything wrong. "'Ello lad," Jack greeted, smiling down at the boy.

Nathan looked up at him briefly, his brown eyes filled with sadness, before going back to playing in the dirt. "Hi," Nathan said sadly.

Jack frowned curiously at the child's behavior. "What's wrong, lad?" Jack asked as he knelt down beside the boy. "Somethin' botherin' ye?"

Nathan sniffed as tears welled up in his eyes. "I want my Daddy to come home," he half sobbed.

"Why's that lad?" he asked, placing a hand on they boy's shoulder.

"Sarah's being mean to me," he sniffed. "She kicked me out of the house because she said I was being bad, but I wasn't! I was just playing that's all. I can't help it if she's a dumb girl and doesn' understand what's fun or not."

Jack had to hold back a laugh. For a moment he had thought that the boy had an actual crisis on his hands. He should have known better then to think that there would be something serious troubling the boy. "Well, when does your Da' get home?"

Nathan frowned, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know," he said simply.

"Can't ye tell time yet, lad?"

"No," Nathan said sheepishly.

Jack frowned. Clearly the boy was younger then he had originally thought. "How old are ye, lad?"

"Four," he said simply.

So the boy was four and Will had been missing for five years. It made sense. It was enough time for Will to meet a girl, get her pregnant, and have a kid of his own.

"What's your name?" Nathan asked. Jack was slightly startled by the question. He had forgotten that he had never told the boy his name. He suddenly wondered if Will had ever told the boy about him, but quickly dismissed the thought. Will was mad at him, so why would he tell his son about him?

"Captain Jack Sparrow," Jack said, feeling a little bit of pride swell inside of him, especially when the boy's face lit up.

"You mean you're a _real_ pirate Captain?" he asked excitedly.

Jack nodded, feeling very proud of himself. "That I am."

"Do you have a ship?"

"Course I do."

"Can I see it?"

"'Fraid not, whelp," he said. "Ye'd have ta ask yer Da' for permission first."

Nathan frowned at Jack's words, kicking at a clump of dirt in disappointment. "He doesn't like pirates," he pouted. "He won't let me go."

"What about yer Mum?" Jack asked carefully, hoping to get some information out of him.

"I don't have one," the boy said quietly.

"Everybody has a Mum lad," Jack pushed, hoping for a bit more. "Even pirates have Mums."

"_I _don't have one," Nathan stressed.

"Did ye ever asked yer Da' bout her?"

"I did _once_, but he got really sad and said he didn't want to talk about it."

Now that was interesting. Either the boy's mother died when he was very young or she had abandoned Will and Nathan soon after he was born. "Well lad," Jack sighed as he got back up, "I must be off. I have some things ta do."

"Can I come too?" Nathan asked hopefully.

"Sorry, lad, but ye can't," he said, patting the boy's head apologetically. "I don't think yer Da' would like the two o' us hangin' around each other that much."

Nathan pouted, but reluctantly stayed where he was. "Okay," he said sadly.

Jack smiled reassuringly as he waved to the child and walked off. Not only was the boy entertaining, he was also quite useful. Will never would have given out this much information, and he was fortunate that the lad liked him enough to actually tell him so much.

-+-+-+-

Jack may have been happy to see Will, but Will was not at all pleased to see him. Will looked as if he had been hoping that Jack would leave in the middle of the night instead of coming back to finish his order. Yet the younger man went head and agreed to work on Jack's sword.

"Tell me more about Hobbs, lad," Jack asked as Will began writing down something in a beaten up old book.

Will frowned, looking up at him briefly before going back to his writing. Looking over his shoulder Jack got a brief look at Will's hand writing and was appalled at how poor it was. The whelp's penmanship looked more like random squiggles then actual words. If Will's handwriting was this bad, then his reading skills couldn't possibly be much better. Jack suddenly felt bad for Nathan. He was probably going to learn how to read and write from Will, when the blacksmith could still use a few lessons himself!

"It's none of your business," Will muttered.

"Well, I am askin' ye ta make that sword for me, an' since that means that I'm currently _doin'_ business with ye, I'd like to know about Hobbs, who ye calm ta be the owner of this store, so that means I'm doin' business with him as well."

Will gave out an exasperated sigh at Jack's comment. "Hobbs is the owner of this store and my landlord. It was originally his brother's shop, but he passed on and left it to him. He didn't know anything about smithing so he gave the shop to me to run it for him."

"I see," Jack mused. "An' do ye live in the shop?" he asked, despite the fact that he already knew the answer.

"No, and I shall not tell you where I live because that _is not_ your business."

"Can I ask ye somethin' Will?"

Will frowned as he all but slammed his pen down on the table top and gave Jack an annoyed look. Other than that, he said nothing, just waited for Jack to ask his question before he could reply with some variation of "it's none of your business".

"Why are ye so bloody mad at me?"

The look on Will's face was utterly indescribable. It seemed as if Jack had offended him just by asking the young man what he had done. Will was all but shaking with rage as he clenched the pen in his hand, nearly breaking it in two with the force. "You know damn well what you did to me," he hissed.

Unfortunately Jack's mind was coming up blank. All he could think of that would cause this much hatred was kissing Elizabeth and even that didn't seem like enough to justify this sort of reaction. Jack sighed, taking a few steps forward towards the blacksmith, only to have the young man take a few more steps back.

"Will," he began, "I'm sorry, but... I _don't_ remember what I did to make ye so mad at me, but... I'm sorry."

"How can you be sorry about something you don't even remember you did?" Will growled. "How can you think to I would except your apology? To think that it's even remotely sincere when you didn't even bother to..." Jack was shocked to see Will actually turn away from him, his emotions clearly too much for him to handle.

"Maybe if ye just told me-"

"You didn't care to remember," Will whispered, "so it obviously wasn't important enough for you to feel sorry about."

"Will-"

"Your order will be ready in two days," Will said crisply. "After that, you will stay away from me and my son forever."

Jack merely nodded, feeling more then a bit confused at how Will seemed so focused on emphasizing that he stay away from Nathan as well. He couldn't help but feel that there was some sort of connection between their falling out and Nathan.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Four**

What had he done? That was the only question on Jack Sparrow's mind for the rest of the day and into the wee hours of the night. What exactly had he done to Will Turner that made the young man get so damn mad at him and stay that way for five whole years? It certainly wasn't giving him to Davy Jones and kissing Elizabeth was something that even Will would have gotten over. Perhaps it was more then just one thing that he had done to the lad. Maybe it was a combination of things? Yet he couldn't think of anything.

Perhaps a better question would be why did he care so damn much? It was just Will Turner after all. Then again, the reason he cared so much was probably because this was _Will Turner_ and as much as Jack didn't want to admit it, he cared about the young man. Five years of not knowing where he was, what he was doing, or who he was with killed him a bit. Now that Will was back in his life, Jack was starting to hope that there could be some slim chance that he could get the boy to join his crew. Of course that was just wistful thinking. There was no way that Will would want to become a pirate now that he was back to his old pirate hating ways.

Not to mention the kid. There would be absolutely no way that Will would allow his only child to be raised on a pirate ship, but maybe there was a way that he could convince the younger man to at least be... civil towards him. There must be a way to get the younger man to soften up a bit.

He had been playing with the idea for a while and it suddenly dawned on him that Nathan was the way to get on Will's good side. The only thing stopping that plan from working, of course, was the fact that he wasn't exactly supposed to be anywhere near the boy. Will had pretty much forbad him from going anywhere near Nathan. So he would merely have to _accidentally_ run into the boy.

That's exactly what Jack had planned to do. He had decided to take a walk by what he _assumed_ was Will's house during what he _assumed_ were Will's normal work hours and was fortunate enough to _accidentally_ find Nathan playing outside. He wasn't fortunate enough to find the boy by himself, however, since it seemed that Sarah was about to take the four year old out for the day.

Jack frowned. How was he supposed to get information out of the toddler if he was being held captive by his over protective nanny?

"Come on Nathan," he heard Sarah say, forcing her nicest tone possible. "Your Daddy wanted me to take you out for the day, so we're going to do some shopping."

"But I don't wanna!" Nathan pouted, stamping his foot in displeasure. "I wanna go to the docks so I can see the ships!"

"No!" Sarah cried, a mixture of fear and annoyance creeping into her tone. "If we go there we might see that, that..."

"Cap'n Jack!"

Jack felt a mixture of surprise and pride when the toddler spotted him, he was starting to wonder when _somebody_ would notice him. The child instantly wrestled away from Sarah's clutches and ran towards the pirate captain.

"Cap'n Jack! Cap'n Jack!" Nathan cried happily, hopping up and down in front of the man. "Cap'n Jack are you going to show me your ship?"

Jack laughed as he patted the little boy's head in greeting. "I'd love ta take ye out for the day, lad, but it seems that yer bein' escorted by a pretty young lady."

Sarah smiled shyly at the compliment in spite of the fact that she knew good and well that it was coming from a pirate. Nathan merely wrinkled his nose in distaste at Jack's words. "That's not a lady, that's just Sarah!" Sarah frowned sourly the boy's words and Jack had to bite his cheek to keep from laughing.

"Difference of taste," Jack assured. "One day ye'll look back on this an' apperecaite all this time yet get ta spend alone with pretty girls. Ye may even like girls when ye get older lad."

"I don't _not_ like girls," Nathan urged, but Sarah cut him off before the child could continue to insult her.

"What do you want?" Sarah snapped. "Mr. Turner told me _not_ to let Nathan anywhere near you."

Dear lord was that boy bitter. Even had the young babysitter keeping Nathan away from him.

_But why? Why does the whelp want me ta stay away from his boy so badly_

"Well that's a darn shame," Jack began in what he hoped an understanding tone. "But I'm sure that a pretty young girl like yerself would rather spend the day doin' other things then watchin' a young boy."

Sarah bristled at his words, but Jack could tell that a part of her was genuinely tempted at the idea of abandoning her babysitting duties. "Nathan is my charge," she said firmly, "and Mr. Turner trusted me enough to let me watch his only child, and I will not betray that trust."

"Really?" Jack began, taking a few steps closer to the girl causing her to take a few steps back. "Not even for a few hours?" As he said this, he dropped a few shillings into the young girl's hand.

Sarah looked up at him, conflict clear in her grayish green eyes. "I... I can't... You're a pirate. How will I know that you won't harm him?"

"I wouldn't dare hurt a hair on the boy's curly head," Jack all but purred, before dropping a few more coins in her hand. "But if ye need more piece of mind..."

Sarah trembled with confusion as she looked from her hand to Jack and back again. "Mr. Turner," she began.

"Must never know about this," Jack finished for her. "Now don't ye worry 'bout a thing. I'll bring him back ta ye at around six."

"Oh no! Not six," Sarah said hurriedly. "M-Mr. Turner comes home at around six for dinner and-"

"Alright, alright lass," Jack said calmly. "Five then?"

"Y-yes," she nodded. "F-five. That'll be fine."

-+-+-+-

Jack was actually surprised about how nice of a time he was having with young Nathan. He would actually go as far as to say that he was actually _enjoying_ spending time with the lad. He had taken the boy on board the Pearl and showed him around the ship from steam to stern. The few crew members that were on guard duty gave him weird looks as he held hands with the toddler. The crew had changed a good deal since Will had last been on the Black Pearl, so whether by luck or not the men on deck with Jack had never seen Will Turner before, so they couldn't see the resemblence between the child and the blacksmith. Jack only hoped that they didn't think that the kid was _his_!

Of course, Jack's feelings for the kids doubled when he realized that the Pearl actually _liked_ him. He could tell that the ship had really taken a shine to the toddler and that made Jack smile. It must have been because this was Bill's grandson. Then again, the Pearl had liked Will as well, so having his blood definetly did help.

By the time they had left the ship, the child was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. His joyful cries of "Cap'n Jack" could be heard from miles away as he profusely asked the pirate captain to carry him in his arms.

"Alright whelp," Jack had laughed as he lifted the boy by his armpits and balanced him on his hips, "I'll carry ye. Jus' remember; _I'm_ the Captain."

Of course, being the good babysitter that he was, Jack had decided to get the boy a good meal in him before he returned him to his original nanny, who was probably gawking at girlly things like combs and hair clips and generally enjoying her freedom from the toddler that seemed to do everything in his power to make her miserable. Unfortunately, Jack being the pirate that he was, only knew of one type of place to get a decent meal and of course that place happened to be a tavern. He didn't see anything wrong with taking the boy to a tavern, his own father had taken him to worse places when he was even _younger_ than Nathan, but he had a good feeling that Will would be furious if he ever found out. Key word being "if".

"Now Nathan," Jack began as he sat down with the young boy on his lap, "now that I've been generous enough to show ye around me ship an' all, I think it's fair that ye do me a wee favor."

Nathan frowned, wrinkling his nose up at the pirate. "Favor?"

"Two favors actually," Jack said, raising two fingers to emphaise his point. "Firstly, ye have ta promise ta _never_ tell yer Da' 'bout what we did today."

"You mean _lie_?" Nathan asked. "I'm not supposed to lie! Daddy says it's bad."

"It is bad, but I'm not askin' ye ta lie. Just... not tell, savvy?" Jack paused, waiting for a reply. When he didn't get one (and realized that the child was giving him a confused look) he gathered that the child didn't understand what "savvy" meant. "Do ye understand, Nathan?"

"I guess," Nathan shrugged.

"Oh! Is he yours?" a voice coed.

Jack looked up in startled surpise to see one of the serving wenches standing over him. "Not mine," Jack said, bouncing the boy on his knee. "Jus' watchin' him for a friend."

"Well he certianly is a handsome little guy," she continued to gush before turning to speak to Nathan. "What would you like to eat deary?"

"Cake!" the boy said happily.

Both Jack and the wench laughed at his comment. "I'm afraid we don't serve cake here, dear," she told him softly.

"Just get us some bread an' two bowls of stew," Jack told her. She smiled before rushing off to fill their order. Once she was gone, Jack turned all his attention back to Nathan. "Now Nathan. The next thing I'm goin' ta ask ye ta do is a very serious big boy task that I want ye ta think very carefully 'bout, alright?"

"'Kay."

"Now, I like yer Da' very much, but he don't seem ta like me," Jack began softly.

"Why?"

"Well, I did somethin' bad ta yer Da' a long time ago an' he's still really sore 'bout it."

"Can't you just say your sorry? When Daddy's mad at me, I tell him I'm sorry and he forgives me."

Jack chuckled at the boy's words. If only it were that easy! "I tried, lad, but he jus' wouldn' forgive me. So, I figure that if I do somethin' _really_ nice for yer ol' Da', then he'll stop bein' mad at ol Captain Jack an' the two o' us can be friends again, an' if yer Da' an' I are friends again, ye an' me can spend a lot more time together." Nathan's face all but lit up at Jack's words. He was bouncing in the pirate's lap with pure excitement. "Now, what I need for ye ta do, is help me make yer Da' like me again. Can ye help me Nathan?"

"Yes!" Nathan all but screamed as he continued to bounce up and down in Jack's lap. "Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! I want you and Daddy to be friends! Then the three of us can be friends and we'll all have so much fun together!"

Jack smiled. With Nathan helping him, it was going to be surprisingly easy to get Will to like him again. "Now lad, can ye tell me anythin' that yer Da' wants? Anything at all?"

"Why?"

"Because if I get it for him, then he'll be happy an' maybe even forgive me."

Nathan frowned, wrinkling his brow in a way that sent shivers down Jack's spine.

_Lord! He looks just like his father!_

"I know what he wants!"

"What is it lad?"

"He wants to get married!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.  
**Author's Note:** This chapter, and all chapters following it, was beta'd by glorfindel 

**Chapter Five**

Jack's blood had run cold at Nathan's announcement. The color had almost completely drained from his bronzed face and his jaw had all but fallen to the floor. Married? Will wanted to get married? His mind instantly went to Sarah, who was always with Nathan, trying to portray an authoritarian figure, but ending up having the boy dislike her instead. Maybe she was trying to groom herself to be good wife material. She was young, pretty, and looked as if she could bear some rather nice healthy children. Not to mention the fact that she always seemed to speak highly of "Mr. Turner", and if Jack remembered correctly, he had seen a hint of a blush on the young girl's face when she had been hiding behind the blacksmith.

No! Will wasn't like that. He was an overly romantic fool who would only marry for love, and he clearly didn't _love_ the young girl. He treated her the way he would any young lass.

"Y-yer Da' wants ta get m-married?" Jack asked, just as the serving wench came back with their food.

"Yep."

"Does he have a... a wife picked out?"

Nathan frowned as he thought about the pirate's question. "No, not really. He just told me once that he wished he could get married so that I could have a mother."

For some reason, those words made Jack feel worse then he had before. There was a pang in his chest at the mere thought of Will falling in love and getting married. He could picture it happening, in fact, he was surprised it hadn't already happened! As he had said before, he had thought that Will would have been married by now, his relationship with ex-fiancée Elizabeth Swann not with standing.

Jack sighed as he allowed the toddler to finish his meal in silence, occasionally entertaining the boy in whatever way he saw fit. Nathan of course was just pleased by the simplest of gestures. Meeting a real live pirate was probably a dream come true for him and he couldn't see fit to ask for anything more.

The walk home was a bit solemn, however, as Nathan latched on to the pirate desperately, occasionally letting out a sad sniff once and again. "Are you going to come see me again, Cap'n Jack?" the boy had asked. The words were spoken so softly and so brokenly that even Jack couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the lad.

"Can't say for sure, lad," Jack said morosely. "It all deepens on your Da'. Course I doubt he'll let me see you though."

Nathan merely pouted and held on to the pirate's neck tighter. Jack sighed as he rubbed the toddler's back affectionately. He wished that he could take back what he had just said! He wished he could tell the boy that he'd be able to see him very soon or, better yet, as much as he liked, but that simply wasn't an option at the moment. Will was still mad at him and it was up to Jack to get him to forgive him, and of course, do it without getting the blacksmith married!

_What do ye care if the lad gets married?_ Jack thought to himself. _Let him get hitched. It'll be good for him an' his boy. This way, at least the kid can have a Mum._

Of course, if all that happened, then Jack would never see Will again. Or Nathan for that matter. It was strange, he had never been very fond of children, but he just seemed to feel such a strong connection with this boy. He actually _enjoyed_ being around the kid. He didn't even mind his annoying questions or the way he was always asking Jack to help him do _everything_, even tasks that Jack had always thought were beyond simple.

He wondered briefly if Will enjoyed this type of thing as well. It was strange, but he had only seen Will with the boy _once_, but the blacksmith seemed to emit parental energy. Jack remembered the way he had gently scolded the child for running off and the authoritative manner in which he had spoken to him. Yet, the other day Nathan had been practically in _tears_ he had missed his father so badly. Not to mention the ecstatic way the boy had thrown himself onto the blacksmith when he had entered the smithy. No, there wasn't a doubt in his mind that Will was a _wonderful_ father. He was practically born to play the role.

_Nathan's mother must have passed away,_ Jack concluded only half jokingly. _No lass in her right mind would give up a man like Will Turner._

Although, Elizabeth had practically thrown Will aside when faced with the opportunity to get together with Captain Jack Sparrow, a move that even Jack thought was stupid. Especially when considering the fact that Jack never could and never would love her. He was already deeply in love with someone else and there wasn't any room for Elizabeth. He had to admit, that he liked the girl well enough, she was pretty, clever, and would have made a wonderful pirate if it weren't for the fact that she were born into the wrong class.

_Fickle as the lass is, can't really fault her for wantin' a chance at goin' ta bed with me._ The very thought made Jack's chest puff with pride, but he did his best to dismiss the air of machismo that was growing around him. That could be the very thing that had gotten Will so damn mad at him in the first place.

Jack sighed quietly when he realized that he had reached his destination. As they approached the modest home, he saw Sarah sitting on the foot steps to the house looking sick with worry. Clearly she was in the midst of swearing to never leave the boy in the hands of a stranger again when she noticed Jack's approach. A wave a relief could be seen crashing down on her as she all but ran over to Jack.

"Where have you been?" she practically demanded, clearly forgetting who she was and, more importantly, who she was talking to.

"Calm down lass," Jack said steadily, not liking the fact that the girl was taking a tone with him, but choosing to let it go. She was merely concerned about the child's safety; there was nothing wrong with that. "I'm only a wee bit late in gettin' the boy back."

"But it's a quarter past six!" she practically screamed.

"An' I said I'd get him back by six," Jack reminded as he put Nathan back down. The child frowned slightly as he rubbed at his eyes with his little fist. "Jus' like ye told me."

"No!" The girl said frantically, shaking her head from side to side with so much force that Jack felt certain it would fly off. "I told you five! _Five!_ Mr. Turner gets _home_ at six!"

_Oh, shit!_ Jack felt the color drain from his face at her words. He had forgotten that she had told him not to come back at six. He had been having such a nice time with the boy that he had all but lost track of time. His only hope at that point would be making it out of there before Will got home.

"Daddy!" he heard Nathan yell happily as he bounded off towards the young man quickly approaching them.

Jack's stomach went cold when he saw Will coming towards them, a look of pure anger etched on his face. Dear lord, it was like staring death in the eyes. Even as he bent down to pick up his son, the blacksmith's expression didn't change. Jack groaned inwardly, knowing that his only option was to stay and wait for Will to come kill him. There was no point in hiding, and he had no chance of talking his way out of this. Will was already angry at him so anything he said would sound like a lie to him and there was no way that Sarah would actually stick up for him. The girl looked ready to rat herself out!

"What are you doing here?" Will all but growled. "I told you not to come near my son! We had an agreement!"

The happy expression that Nathan had been wearing only moments ago quickly melted away into one of sadness and fright. It was clear from the look on his face that he had never heard his father talk this way before. Jack, however, was getting all too familiar with this tone.

"Please don't be mad at him Daddy," Nathan practically pleaded. "I like him."

Will sighed wearily at his son's words, but softened his expression before turning his attention towards the boy. "Son, he's a _pirate_," he explained carefully. "He's not a good man."

"But he's _nice_ to me," Nathan whimpered.

"What's going on out here?"

All eyes turned to face a heavy set man in his later years as he stood in the door way. The man was quite squatty and the only word Jack could think to describe him was "round". His hair had almost completely gone gray and the mustache he sported seemed to puff and deflate with every breath.

"Nothing Mr. Hobbs," Will answered politely, ignoring Jack for the time being. "We were just... discussing something."

_So_ he's _Hobbs, eh?_

"Well, it's getting late and the children need to be fed. Bring your boy inside William, he shouldn't be out after dark," he told him. Jack was slightly taken aback by the tone that Hobbs took with Will. If he didn't know any better, he would think that this Hobbs fellow were Will's father or some other relation. Hobbs then turned and looked at Sarah, who had been standing in stunned silence as she readied herself to listen to Will condemn Jack to death. "Come along Sarah. Your supper is waiting for you."

Whatever daze Sarah had been in it seemed to disappear at the sound of Hobbs calling her name. "Y-yes Father," she said obediently as she hurried inside.

Jack felt his eyebrows shoot up in surprise at this declaration. So Hobbs was Sarah's father. Sarah was the daughter of Will's landlord. Jack couldn't figure if there was any real significance in this discovery, but it certainly was interesting to know that there was a connection there.

"William," the elder man continued. "Would your uh... _friend_ like to come inside?"

Jack was about to say something terribly clever when Will, poor sport that he had suddenly become, cut him off. "No, he was just leaving."

Hobbs merely bobbed his round head once before disappearing inside. Once he had closed the door behind him, Will turned and gave Jack a hard look. "I won't fill your order," he said tightly. "You can find someone else to make your sword. Leave and don't ever come back."

With that, the younger man stormed inside, ignoring Nathan's quiet protests. Jack felt his heart practically collapse into itself as he looked at Will and Nathan for what he feared was maybe the last time.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Six**

"So you won't be gettin' a new sword then?" Gibbs asked as Jack finished telling him the story of his finding Will Turner, discovering that the blacksmith had a child, his strange hostility towards him, and how Will now refused to make a sword for him, merely because Jack had spoken to the child. Of course, since this had happened over three days ago, Gibbs had actually heard that story three times already and knew it from beginning to end. Jack on the other hand didn't realize this since he was piss drunk.

"Aye," Jack groaned as he took a sip of his rum. "It don' seem like I will. Least not a sword by Will Turner."

"Well, look at it dis way, Cap'n," Gibbs slurred helpfully, repeating the words that he had said so many times before. "Least now ye know where the lad is."

"Lot o' good dat'll do me," Jack grumbled. "'E don't ever wanna see me again."

Indeed after Will had said that he would not fill Jack's order and told the pirate to leave and never come back, Jack had, for once, decided to honor the boy's wishes and not come by to see him again. Of course, Will had never said that Jack had to leave _port_ and never come back. So he had decided to wait around for a few days more, so that he could figure out exactly what Will was so damn mad about. It was insane! Three days later and Jack was still as much in the dark about what had caused the rift between him and the young blacksmith as he had been the moment he had walked off his ship five years ago.

"Well if ye ask me," Gibbs began jokingly, hoping to lift the pirate captain's mood a bit, "the boy's actin' as if the kid is _yers_."

Jack frowned at the older man's comment. He stopped mid way in he lifting his mug of rum to his lips.

_Nathan is four... Will left_ five _years ago._

He remembered the way Will had flinched when Jack had said that Nathan must have gotten his smarts from his mother, the disheartened look on the child's face as he confessed to Jack that he did not have a mother, Nathan telling him how his father hated pirates, Will demanding that he stay away from his son and the frightened look on the other man's face the moment Nathan had acknowledge him in the smithy.

Jack stood up quickly from his sitting position, knocking over his chair in the process. All eyes in the tavern turned to him, gaping at the pirate in confusion and silent fear.

"C-Cap'n?" Gibbs began, looking up at the other man questioningly.

"That's it," Jack muttered to himself. "I know what I did."

Without warning, Jack all but ran out of the bar, leaving Gibbs to sputter and stare after him and the rest of the occupants of the tavern to shrug off his behavior and continue their meal with lingering confusion.

-+-+-+-

When Jack came to the Hobbs home that night, piss drunk and reeking of rum, he was too blinded by his inebriated state and his urge to see Will Turner right away to bother to notice that he had frightened the living daylights out of the heavy set man and his equally round wife when he practically demanded that he see the blacksmith in question. The two had let him in, after much hesitation and debate amongst themselves, and Jack had all but ran upstairs, not bothering to ask which room was Will's.

Fortunately for him, Will and some of the other tenants had peaked out of their rooms to see what all the commotion was about.

"I told you not to come back here," Will frowned when he saw Jack coming up the stairs.

"We need ta talk," Jack said, ignoring Will's stern look and harsh tone.

"There's nothing for us-"

"I know about Nathan."

Will froze in horror at his words. The blacksmith looked as if he had been struck. Will hesitantly glanced from side to side at the other tenants beside him, before slowly nodding at Jack and motioning for him to follow him inside. Jack followed the boy inside, making sure to close the door behind him.

Jack watched silently as Will walked over towards the bed, sitting down tensely at the edge of the mattress as if he were ready to jump off at any moment. Jack's mind was reeling. He was still a bit drunk, but he had sobered up enough on the way over that he would remember what was being said on the next day. He was a father. Nathan was _his_ son.

_No. Not just my son. He's Will's son, too._

But how was that even possible? How could two men have a baby? Why the hell hadn't Will told him from the beginning?

_This is it. This_ has _to be the reason the whelp was so goddamn mad at me._

His thoughts quieted as Will took in a few shaky breaths, gaining Jack's attention. The pirate watched and listened carefully to each one of the younger man's movements as he waited for him to reveal more information on what had transpired between them five years ago.

"I have to be honest Jack," Will began quietly, "I was starting to think you would never have guessed. I thought for a moment that you had left for good without finding out the truth and I was... relieved."

"Relieved?" Jack repeated indignantly. "Relieved dat ye could continue lyin' ta me? Dat ye could keep me _son_ from me?"

"And since when was he _your_ son Jack?" Will asked harshly as he turned to glare at the other man.

"From the moment he was conceived."

"That's where you're wrong Jack. Just because you had a part in creating him, doesn't mean you're his father! You weren't around! You weren't there for him!"

"Dat's because ye never gave me a bloody chance ta be!" Jack shot back hotly. How could Will accuse him of being a bad father when he didn't even know that his child had existed until a few hours ago? "Ye never even told me dat ye were... Ye were..." Dear lord what was the word? Will couldn't have been pregnant could he? He was a man! Men didn't get pregnant!

"Expecting?" Will finished for him.

Jack sighed in exasperation. He wasn't grasping what was going on, and he honestly couldn't say if it were because of the rum he drank or because of how shocking it was to find out that he had suddenly become a father. "Why don't ye jus' start from the beginnin', lad," Jack sighed, sitting down next to Will. "Then we can go back ta figurin' out whose at fault."

Will nodded slowly at the pirate's suggestion. "Do you remember the cannibals Jack? The ones that made you their chief and tried to eat you?"

"The Pelegostos?" Jack said with a laugh. "Of course I do. How can I forget?"

"Well, as you may also remember, when they had captured me, they made me your... virgin sacrifice of sorts."

Jack had to bit his cheek to keep the smile from spreading across his lips. He remembered that. It had been the one and only highlight of the whole affair. He remembered going into his hut and seeing a naked Will Turner sitting on his bed waiting for him, blushing from head to toe and wrapping a blanket around his waist to keep his modesty covered. He had explained as gently (and seductively) as possible that Will was to be his virgin sacrifice for the night and that his only job was to _please_ him, and if he failed in his duty, he would be killed and eaten. There had been a full ten minutes in which Will and Jack had argued back and forth about other options, trying to figure another way out of the scenario, only to have Will finally submit and allow Jack to take him.

Oh, how he had enjoyed that night! He had used ever last excuse in the book to talk Will into letting him go a record _three times_ to "make absolutely certain that our audience is convinced that their chief was pleased." (There had been guards set up outside of the hut to make sure that they indeed committed the act.) He would have gone for a fourth time, but he decided to let the lad be and get some much needed rest. The next morning, Will was taken away from him and sent off with the rest of the crew. Jack had done his best to act as "godly" as possible about the scenario, but he couldn't help but slip in a threat that if they so much as harmed one hair on the boy's pretty head he'd make the sky come crashing down on them.

"What you don't know about that night," Will continued, pulling Jack out of his memories, "is that before you came into the hut, the P-Pelegostos had been giving me these strange drinks. They tasted bitter and made me gag, but the Pelegostos wouldn't let me so much as spit one drop out. I didn't understand it at all then, but I realize now that... that it must have been something to help me... conceive. You were wrong Jack. I _wasn't_ your virgin sacrifice, I was your _mate_."

Jack nodded slowly at the other man's words. It made sense, especially Tia Dalma's words to Will. She had said that the boy had a "touch of destiny" about him. She must have been referring to the baby that he was carrying. The pirate suddenly felt a rock form in the pit of his stomach. He had been right when bargaining to Jones, Will _was_ worth more than one soul! Dear lord, he had given a pregnant man over to the devil himself!

"So, ye were pregnant dat whole time," Jack said, his voice coming out surprisingly small.

"Yes," Will answered, his voice equally as hushed. "But I didn't know it. I didn't find out until it was too late."

Jack turned and looked at the other man in stunned silence. "Too late?" he repeated. "Too late how?"

Will said nothing. He merely sat there, clenching his fists in the bed sheets and doing his best to hold back all he emotions waring inside of him. "You wouldn't understand," he whispered, bowing his head in shame.

"Will," Jack began gently, scooting closer to the young man only to have him scoot away, "ye might as well tell me. There ain't no use in hidin' things now."

"There was nothing left for me Jack," he whispered brokenly. "My fiancée had left me, my father had passed on, and I... I was alone. Completely and utterly alone. I had no one... nothing. I was... scared."

Jack felt his heart break in half at the other man's words. He couldn't begin to imagine what Will had gone through, miserable and alone and... pregnant. Will himself probably didn't have a clue about what had been going on around him.

"It didn't really click until I started to gain weight," Will continued. "I remember thinking 'how can I be so big when I eat next to nothing?' But there was no way to get an answer. I couldn't see a doctor. I didn't even have a job at the time! I was desperate, so I decided to take a job as an extra hand on a merchant vessel. Some time during that voyage, I realized that something was... _moving_ inside of me. Two and two came together and I realized that I was pregnant. I left and took habor in the next port we landed in, here, and I tried... I tried to look for a place to stay... No one would take me in.

"I remember giving birth. It was the middle of a hurricane. I had no where to go, so I had begged a doctor to look at me. He would have turned me away if it hadn't been for the blood seeping from between my legs."

Jack turned bright green at his words. So tortured, so alone, so tragic. He studied the face of the man next to him carefully and noticed in the dim candle light that the boy's eyes were red with unshed tears. His face was contorting in pain as he stowed away all the emotions building inside of him. The stubborn fool! Did he really think that Jack would judge him weak if he were to shed a few tears? Did he actually believe that the pirate was so cold and unfeeling that he would mock him when he poured out his anguished soul to him.

At that moment, Jack suddenly realized that he was in love with Will. He loved the beautiful, stubborn young man sitting next to him. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with him and their child, begging for his forgiveness and healing all of his hurts.

_No. No no. That's the rum talkin'. Ye're drunk Sparrow, ye're drunk! Ye ain't in love! Not with Will Turner._

"Why didn' ye come ta me?" Jack asked quietly. "Why didn' ye jus' ask me fer help?"

Will laughed bitterly at the other man's words. "Weren't you listening Jack? I didn't know until I was much further along! Besides, even if I had come to you, what would make you believe me? What would make you _help_ me?"

"Ye were carryin' me flesh an' blood."

"That wouldn't have mattered. After all, when has Jack Sparrow ever done anything out of charity? Why would you help me when there was no gain for you? There is nothing to gain from having a child Jack. Not for a pirate."

Jack frowned at the younger man's words, his feelings of love and devotion quickly set aside in light of the accusations. "What makes ye think ye know what I want?"

Will frowned, turning his chocolate brown eyes to the other man. "Name one time you've ever done anything nice for me without there being something in it for you!" Will challenged. "You wouldn't have helped me. You didn't even like me."

"Dat's not true!"

"Yes it is. Why else would you steal Elizabeth from me? Why else would you so casually barter with my life? If you ever felt anything for me at all, it was because I was Bootstrap Bill's son."

Jack was about to argue further, he was about to rant and rave that he had done those things because he had had a plan, not out of dislike or contempt, but he was cut off when he saw that Will's tears were flowing freely now. Twin streaks of tears ran down the boy's golden cheeks as if the blacksmith didn't even know they were there. It suddenly dawned on him what was really going on. "Ye were in love with me weren't ye lad?"

Will's only reply was to turn away and sob. The tears that had been flowing unchecked down his cheeks were now all but flooding his face as he sobbed openly. "I was... stupid!" he sobbed. "I loved Elizabeth, but a part of me... a part of me wanted you! I cared for you, wanted you, loved you! I even _gave myself_ to you! All you ever did was cause me pain... and to make things worse, you stole Elizabeth from me! I gave my heart to both of you and you threw it away as if it were nothing! I felt... worthless."

In a mad impulse, Jack reached out and wrapped his arms around Will's protesting form, pulling the boy towards himself in a crushing embrace. What a fool he had been! Will had been in love with him and he had broken his heart! The lad didn't deserve that! He was a good boy. A beautiful boy, both in body and soul! Why hadn't he seen it before? Why hadn't he been nicer to him? He could have had it all; the Pearl, Will, and Nathan. Just the four of them, a happy loving family. Instead all he had done was cause Will pain.

"I'm sorry," Jack said honestly. "I'm sorry! I was wrong! I didn' mean ta break yer heart lad! I didn' know."

"It doesn't matter anymore," Will sniffed, wiping his tears with the back of his hand. "Nothing matters. I won't be hurt again, because I won't love again. The only one I'll give my heart to is my son, because he will never break it and I'll ask you once more to leave, so that he will never suffer the pain of knowing you."


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Seven**

Jack stared at Will's back in stunned silence. His jaw hung open as he watched the other man's mood suddenly turn from hurt to angry. "Ye can't mean dat Will," he began. "He's me son! Ye 'ave no right ta keep 'im from me!"

"I have every right!" Will snapped, quickly turning around to glare at the other man. "And he is_ my_ son, not yours! You were never a father to him and you never will be!"

"What gives ye the right ta judge me parentin' when ye 'aven' even given me the chance ta prove what type o' Da' I can be?" he shot back. He was starting to get tired of Will calling him a bad father when up to a few days ago he had no idea that Nathan existed (and even then Jack didn't know that Nathan was his _son_).

"You're a pirate!" Will shot, as if Jack had forgotten his occupation within the last few minutes of their conversation. "My son doesn't need to grow up around a man who steals from innocent people for a living. A man who is constantly soaked with rum. A man who you are never certain is telling the truth or that he is even capable of doing so! A man whose occupation consists of killing decent men while they are away at sea. You are no type of father! Men like you should never have the privilage of fathering children."

"Are ye forgettin'," Jack all but hissed, "dat _yer_ father was a man like me?"

"My father was a _good_ man," Will fumed. "I may have made the mistake of claiming that _you_ were six years ago, but I was mistaken then. My eyes have opened since then and I now see you for what you truly are."

"Oh an' yer oh so much wiser now, aren't ye?" Jack snapped standing up so that he could gesture around the room with his arms. "Ye're jus' so damn capable now aren't ye lad? Livin' 'ere in another man's home, workin' in another man's shop, an' makin' _jus'_ enough ta get by! What a marvellous life ye live! What a grand future ye're providing' for our boy-" Jack would have been more than happy to continue his, admittedly, rage and rum fuelled rant, but he was interrupted when Will's fist unexpectedly collided with the side of his face.

He stumbled backward, completely taken aback by the sudden burst of violence. He had never expected Will to attack him, and even now the move seemed completely out of character for the blacksmith. Still, it was not the first time that Captain Jack Sparrow had taken a blow to the face. Although his slick tongue had gotten him out of many a brawl, he was able to hold his own well enough. So he did the first thing that came to his mind: he pushed him.

Will stumbled backward in surprise (clearly he had not been expecting Jack to get physical either), and fell backwards onto his bed. Jack was on top of him before the blacksmith could make another move. He had intended to steady the boy enough so that he could talk some sense into him without worrying about receiving another hit, but somewhere along the way Jack became incredibly aroused and did (once again) the first thing that came to mind; he kissed him.

There was a lot of struggling and muffled curse words and frankly Jack was surprised that Will hadn't bucked him off, but after a while the boy relaxed and kissed him back. Oh Lord was his heart ever singing as he kissed the man that he loved. He hadn't kissed him in five years and yet it felt just as wonderful as the first time. Carefully, Jack slipped his tongue inside, still very aware that there was a chance of it being bitten and was surprised that Will allowed him access into the sweet cavity of his mouth. It suddenly occurred to Jack that Will must have remained celibate for five years!

_Dear Lord, the boy has gone five years without sex! No wonder he's not fightin' me._ There was a brief pause at that thought, but Jack shrugged it off. After all, who would really care what was said about them as long as he got to have sex with Will Turner.

-+-+-+-

Jack hadn't been expecting much the next morning, but something slightly... civil would have done just fine. A peck on the cheek, a slight squeeze of the shoulder, maybe even a simple "good morning Jack". Anything really, but not the cold silent treatment that Will had bestowed upon him.

He groaned as he was pulled lightly from his half sleeping state by the bright rays of the sun beating down upon his face. It certainly was irritating for it to be so damn bright so damn early! Grumpily, he turned over to his side, hoping to burry his face into a pillow and wrap his arms around his bed mate while he was at it, but he quickly found that the bed was currently short one blacksmith. With a frown, he cracked open one eye and saw Will silently getting dressed at the foot of the bed. The younger man had just finished pulling on his boots when Jack had finally sat up. Jack blinked a few times in confusion at the scene in front of him, before clearing his throat in order to gain the blacksmith's attention.

Will turned and stared at him blankly, completely uninterested in Jack's presence.

"Good morning," Jack said, hoping to remind the younger man of the usual formalities that came with the waking process.

However, his greeting was met only with silence as Will sighed and got to his feet, pulling back his lose brown curls tightly and tying them off with a piece of cloth. "You should get going," he stated flatly, not bothering to turn and look at Jack's shocked face. "And be sure that no one sees you. It'll be hard to explain why there's a pirate in my bed.

"As for me," Will began, cutting off anything Jack was about to say, leaving the pirate to question whether or not the boy had noticed that he was about to say anything at all, "I've got to go make an _honest_ living running _another man's_ shop."

With that, the young man left the room, not even giving Jack the satisfaction of slamming the door as he left. Jack gaped in shock at the boy's treatment of him. He certainly hadn't been expecting anything like that, yet a part of him realized that he should have. His mind was swirling, reeling actually, yet he knew exactly what Will was doing even if he didn't fully grasp why.

Yet another sigh escaped Jack's lips as he flopped back onto the bed in frustration. The sigh was soon met with a groan, the result of last night's attempt to drown his sorrows, at least, that was what the first half of last night had been about. The rest... had been a disaster! Jack felt as if he had taken two steps forward and three steps backward in his relationship with Will (if it could even be called a relationship). On the one hand, he now knew why Will was so damn mad at him and the connection between Nathan and his falling out with the blacksmith. On the other hand, he knew that Will had absolutely no intention of allowing Jack back into his or his newly discovered son's life and the fact that the two had just slept together certainly didn't help matters at all.

_No surprise there,_ Jack thought bitterly.

With a grunt and an extremely frustrated sigh, Jack managed to lift himself off of the bed and began to scramble around the room gathering his clothes, all the while doing his best not to think about the situation with Will. A task made incredibly hard when he was standing in the blacksmith's bedroom. Jack merely doubled his efforts to get out of the room as quickly as possible. He needed more mutual territory in order to think things out clearly. Sitting around in Will's room would only sure to get him into more trouble.

Grabbing the last of his effects, Jack hurriedly made his way towards the window. He paused suddenly when he realized that a part of him wanted to see little Nathan. After all, the boy was his son, he had a right to see him didn't he?

_An' how many other d'ye have already Sparrow? How many children did ye father without knowin' it? He ain't yer first an' chances are he won't be yer last._

There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that Nathan was not his first child. If Jack had had a shilling for every wench, whore, and barmaid that came up to him claiming to be carrying his child, he wouldn't need to be a pirate, would he? Of course, Jack never believed any of those women, especially since he didn't remember the names most of them, but Nathan was special. He was different from all the little bastard children that he had (allegedly) fathered over the years. He was smart, funny, and... and the first of his illegitimate children that Jack had ever seen!

"No," Jack sighed, shaking his head reluctantly. "I'm in enough trouble as it is. I shouldn' be goin' behind the lad's back no more." With that, Jack climbed out the window and left.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Eight**

Jack knew in his gut what he should do; he should leave, leave port as soon as possible and forget all about Will Turner and their illegitimate child. He had done it before and it wasn't hard to think that he couldn't do it again. Yet a part of him, a nagging, irritating part of him that seemed to voice its opinion more often in the years since he had met Will Turner, knew that wasn't the right thing to do. He knew that he had... feelings for Will. Strong feelings that felt similar to... No. He wasn't going to think it again! He had been intoxicated when that thought had came floating to the front of his mind, and he knew now that he did not feel _that way_ about Will Turner, but he did feel rather strongly towards him and their son and unfortunately, because of these strong feelings, he couldn't let himself abandon Will and Nathan. After all, if he did, he would just be proving the blacksmith correct in his thinking that Jack was a good-for-nothing drunkard with no sense of responsibility or parenting abilities.

As a result of this decision, Jack extended his crew's shore leave, stating that he was seeking another blacksmith to commission his sword and that it would take much longer then expected to fill the request. True, it was an out and out lie, especially since, as Will had said, there were no other smiths in port, but since his crew was too busy being occupied with causing a general ruckus in taverns and seeking out the very limited amounts of pleasurable company the town had to offer, it didn't seem to bother them much. So it was that Jack spent the next few days trying to figure out what he was going to do about his situation with Will, as well as how exactly was he supposed to obtain a new sword.

It was strange, but Jack suddenly found himself at a loss as to what to do. He had considered having the Pearl leave port and in effect leave him behind so that he could spend more time with Will and try to smooth things out between the two of them, but he had dismissed the thought as soon as it had come to him.

It was also strange that while he was sitting near the docks trying to think of what to do next he was approached by little Nathan, smiling from ear to ear as he waved his little wooden sword happily. "Hello Cap'n," he greeted and instantly stood in front of him reaching his arms out towards him.

Jack blinked in confusion at the child's sudden appearance. He didn't think he'd be seeing Nathan any time soon, yet here he was standing right in front of him, no more then two weeks after he and Will had had their little argument. Jack frowned as he bent down to lift the child into his arms, finally realizing that that was what he had been gesturing for him to do, and balanced him on his hips. "What are ye doin' here Nathan?" Jack asked.

"Aren't you happy to see me Cap'n?" Nathan pouted, a hint of worry and disappointment clear in the four year old's eyes.

"Course I'm happy ta see ye," Jack confirmed, not wanting to have a crying child on his hands. "Jus' curious 'bout how ye got here. Ye didn' run off again did ye?"

"Nuh uh," Nathan said simply as he swung his legs happily in the air. "Sarah followed me."

"Sarah?" Jack repeated in surprise. It was only then did he notice the distance figure of a young woman with sandy brown hair tied into twin braids slowly approaching them. It was obvious that Sarah wanted to speak to him, but Jack couldn't think for the life of him why.

"Mr. Sparrow?" the girl began awkwardly once she was in earshot.

"_Captain_ Sparrow, actually," Jack corrected.

"Right," Sarah blushed, shifting from foot to foot nervously. "Would it be alright if I had a word with you... in private?"

Jack raised a questioning eyebrow at the girl's request. Now this was certainly interesting. Will wasn't speaking to him, yet Sarah wanted to talk to him. He suddenly had the feeling that something terrible had happened to Will. Yet if that was the case, then why wasn't Nathan upset? Perhaps the girl was taking things into her hands and had decided to tell him off for once and for all? No, the child could barely look at him, she wouldn't have the courage to stand up to him.

"I suppose," Jack said at length as he carefully placed Nathan down on the ground. "Give us a moment will, ye lad?" Nathan pouted, but reluctantly did as he was told, swinging his wooden sword at invisible foes as he went. When he was a fair distance away, Jack turned his attention back to Sarah, a neutral look on his face as he waited for the girl speak.

Sarah's crimson cheeks turned a few shades darker as she cleared her throat awkwardly and began fiddling with her braids. "I wanted to talk to you... about Mr. Turner."

Jack wasn't surprised. Why else would the girl want to talk to him? "Go on," he said, not displaying any outward emotions.

"Well, he... he doesn't really seem to have many... f-friends, but well, I heard that you came to see him a few days ago and the two of you spent the whole night talking in his room, so I, uh, assume that you're his friend."

_Talking?_ Is that what she had heard? No, that's obviously what Will had told everyone, although Jack doubted that he had made any implication that he and Jack were friends, the girl was obviously jumping to conclusions. Jack, however, didn't really mind. Being Will's friend was better then being some pirate who he just happened to know (or worse).

"I suppose ye could call us that," Jack drawled casually.

"Does he listen to you?" Sarah asked hopefully.

Now Jack was worried. "Why?" he asked coolly. "Ye need me ta talk ta him?"

"Well," she began nervously, then stopped suddenly as if realizing she was about to say something personal to a man she hardly knew at all.

"It's alright lass," Jack urged soothingly, all previous attempts at intimidation forgotten. All he knew was that this girl had something important to say about Will and he had to know what it was. "William an' I go ways back ye see. Knew him for quite a number o' years."

"Really?" she asked suspiciously. "He's never really spoken about you before. He hardly even speaks of you now!"

_Now! Ye think o' this now!_ Jack had to bite his cheek in order to keep from screaming the words at the young girl. Blowing up in her face wouldn't help the child get him information any faster. "We had a fallin' out a few years back, but I can assure ye that there's nothin' but mutual respect an' admiration between the two o' us now."

A small groan escaped the young girl's mouth as she began chewing on her bottom lip nervously. There was obvious conflict warring within her and Jack was starting worry that she would balk and retract everything she said. Not that she had said anything important to begin with. "I'm... I'm really worried about him. You see, he's been sick for a few days now and... and he won't see a doctor. I know he doesn't have much money, but I asked father if perhaps he could lend him some so he could see a doctor, but Mr. Turner was completely against it.

"He's so noble," she sighed wistfully, a dreamy look crossing her grayish-green eyes as she twirled the end of her braid. Dear Lord, he had been right all along! The naïve young lass had feelings for dear William, and Jack wouldn't be surprised if the blacksmith was completely unaware of this. "He always puts the needs of others ahead of himself, especially when it comes to his son... but for once, I think that Mr. Turner should look out for himself. If something were to happen to him then... what shall become of Nathan?

"He doesn't have a mother you know, and I don't think it's proper for a man to raise a child by himself," she blushed before adding quietly, "He should really try looking for a wife."

Jack didn't know which was stronger, the urge to roll his eyes or the urge to burst out laughing. Of course, it was clearly the boy's dashing good looks and noble nature that turned the young girl's head, they were the same qualities that Jack himself found quite endearing, but the boy's looks and charms were not what was important right now. What was important was this illness Sarah was talking about. Love sick or not, the girl had a point, it wouldn't do for Will to get sick and stay that way simply cause he wanted to be a stubborn little whelp. Someone had to set the lad straight, and Jack knew he was just the man for the job.

"Say no more lass," Jack said reassuringly, "I'll be sure ta give young Mr. Turner a good talkin' to."

Sarah's face practically lit up as a wave of relief came crashing down on her. "Thank you," she said breathlessly. "Thank you so much Captain Sparrow! You have no idea how much this means to me!"

"I want to talk to Cap'n Jack now!" Nathan whined as he seemingly reappeared from out of no where, waving his wooden sword wildly in annoyance. The sword managed to give Sarah's knee a good swatting, but it also connected with Jack's leg which caused Nathan to stop and give both parties an apologetic look (but really it was only meant for Jack).

"Well, I..." Sarah stammered, rubbing her sore knee.

"A few minutes won't hurt," Jack said, resisting the urge to rub the sore spot on his leg.

Nathan smiled happily at Jack's words as he grabbed the pirate's hand and began dragging him away from Sarah. Clearly the boy wanted to talk in private as well. Jack laughed as the child began to swing their joined hands happily, before pausing to look up at Jack. "Are you going to get my Daddy married?" Nathan asked seriously.

"What?" Jack practically gasped.

"You said you would, 'member?" Nathan pointed out. "When we were eating dinner, _you_ said you'd give my Daddy what he wanted most and _I_ said that what he wanted most was to get married. Are you going to get him married?"

Jack blanched slightly at the boy's memory. He had forgotten about the whole conversation, but now that he thought about it he did sort of owe William a wedding, especially since he indirectly ruined his first one. No, no, no! What was he thinking? There were more important things at hand. He couldn't just go around marrying people at a time like this. He had to talk to Will about seeing a bloody doctor!

"I don't think so lad," Jack told him apologetically.

"Why not?" Nathan pouted. "How else are we going to be friends if you don't get Daddy married?"

"I'll jus' have ta think o' somethin' else."

"B-but..." Nathan began, tears of distress welling up in his dark brown eyes, eyes that Jack now realized mirrored his own.

Jack sighed. The last thing he wanted was a crying toddler on his hands. "Nathan," Jack began, in the gentlest voice he could manage as he bent down to eye level with the child. "I know ye want ta be me friend an' all, but ye have ta understand, gettin' married is a very serious matter. I can't jus' pick out anyone fer yer Da' an' have him marry them. Ye're Da... he's a very special man an' he deserves someone special that'll treat him right. D'ye understand?" Nathan frowned in confusion, shaking his head from side to side. Jack sighed in slight annoyance. How much simpler could he put this? "I care 'bout yer Da' too much ta see him marry the wrong person."

"Then why don't _you_ marry him?"

Jack blanched at the boy's words. _Oh Lord. Ye certainly have talked yerself into a corner on this one Sparrow._ "It ain't that simple, Nathan," he explained carefully. "Ye see... ye're Da' an' I are men an' men can't get married."

"But Mr. Hobbs is married and he's a man," Nathan pointed out.

Jack groaned mentally, suddenly wishing that he was talking to someone a few years older. "What I mean is... I'll tell ye when ye're older," he finished in exasperation. Some things were just easier not to explain, especially when it involved four year olds.

"Alright," Nathan sighed reluctantly. He had obviously heard the phrase several times before and knew that it meant that it was the end of a conversation. "Will you promise to keep trying to make Daddy like you?"

Jack smiled as he patted the boy's head affectionately. "I can promise ye lad, I'll never stop tryin'."


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Nine**

Although he had promised Sarah that he would go talk to Will, he was strangely nervous about the affair. This would be the first time he had spoken to Will since they had slept together and frankly, Jack wasn't looking forward to the blacksmith throwing that in his face. In fact, he already had his own rebuttal memorized in anticipation to anything Will threw at him.

Jack frowned slightly as he approached the surprisingly quiet smithy. Something was wrong. He had never gone to _Hobbs's Smithy_ when it was quiet. Usually Will was pounding away at something loud enough to be heard two blocks down, but today not a sound escaped the small shop. Jack had to suppress the feeling of worry and dread that had suddenly welled up inside of him as he slowly crept towards the front door, easing it open as gently as possible.

Empty. The entire smith was completely devoid of all signs of life. Jack raised an eyebrow in confusion. Had Will actually taken a day off? That wasn't at all like the hard working young man. He had always assumed that the only way to get the lad out of working was to break both his arms and legs and strap him down to a bed. Taking a few more steps into the smith, Jack realized that there was a fire in the forge and tools set up as if they were still in use. He realized then that there was indeed someone here.

"What are you doing here?" A voice came from behind him. The pirate did his best not to jump in surprise at the arrival. Turning around, he was shocked by the man he saw behind him. It was William Turner alright, but he was most certainly not in good health. His skin was practically green and stray strands of hair were clinging to the sides of his pasty face. His skin was shining with sweat and Jack could tell that it was not the usual result of a hard day's work. The girl had not been lying, Will looked terrible! It wasn't hard to imagine the young smith collapsing right in front of him. "I thought you were gone."

"Not that easy ta get rid o'I'm afraid," Jack joked, but in reality he was consumed by worry. His heart went out to the sickly young man before him. His arms yearned to hold him, to press the younger man's body to his and stroke his fevered skin, kiss his warm brow, and generally fuss over him. Of course, the stern, half hateful look in the younger man's tired brown eyes told him that he could do no such thing anytime soon.

"Apparently not," Will grumbled. "What do you want from me now?"

Jack had to snort at the younger man's words. The boy certainly had a way of making a mountain out of a mole hill. He asked the young man to commission one sword (which he didn't even finish, despite the fact that Jack had paid him handsomely for his services) and Will perceived Jack as constantly bothering the blacksmith to do him favors. Although the whelp could very well have been referring to their past encounters, but Jack decided it was best not to go into that right now. "My assistance was requested by a young girl who is secretly in love with ye," Jack said and was rewarded with a weary sigh that was, for once, not directed at him. So Will iwas aware/i that Sarah had feelings for him, yet he never acted upon them. That was promising.

"I'm not seeing a doctor," Will said bluntly, folding his arms in front of his chest. Jack frowned at the gesture, squinting his eyes and cocking his head in confusion. Was it just him or had Will actually gotten... thinner? No, that couldn't have been the case. It had only been a little more then two weeks since he had last seen the lad. He couldn't have lost weight in that short amount of time.

"Darlin', ye're sick. I jus' bloody walked in here an' I could already tell. There's no need ta be proud 'bout it, jus' go see a doctor."

"I'm not sick," Will stated stubbornly, jutting his chin as if to emphasize his point. "Besides, even if I were sick it's none of your concern."

"Actually, it is my concern. Since ye want ta raise Nathan, me son, by yerself I need ye healthy ta properly do so."

"As if you care," he muttered, pinning Jack with a challenging look. "Once you get back out to sea, you won't even remember his name."

"That's not true. I actually plan on gettin' it tattooed right above me heart ta keep from forgettin'," Jack said half jokingly. He really was planing to get Nathan's name tattooed on to his chest. He just hadn't figured out a design yet. "Figure if ye wanted ta tell me his birthday it'll save me a lot o' time. Course, I could add yer name in there if ye wanted."

"I'd rather you kept my name and my son's off of your body," Will said in slight disgust.

"Ye never were any fun, luv," he teased.

"Don't call me that," he hissed. "I don't want you referring to me as 'love', 'darling', or any other term of 'endearment' that you can think of."

"Fine," Jack shrugged. "So long as ye promise ta see a doctor, luv."

"I'll do no such thing."

"What type o' example are ye settin' fer our son? Yer sick an' ye won't get help? How d'ye think ye'll manage ta get better?"

"I'm not sick," Will said forcefully, although it sounded like he was trying to convince himself more then he was Jack. "There's nothing wrong with me. I'm just fine."

Jack frowned as he took a few steps closer towards the blacksmith. Will stiffened uncomfortably as Jack laid a gentle hand on his forehead. "Ye don't have a temperature," Jack murmured, sliding his hand gently down the side of Will's face. He was surprised that the boy hadn't slapped him away yet. "But ye do feel warm though."

"Well it does tend to get a bit hot in here," Will pointed out sarcastically, taking a step away from Jack and his hand's gentle caress.

"Will, please," Jack began wearily. "I ain't tryin' ta attack ye or nothin'. All jokes aside, I really am worried. Go see a doctor. If ye need money-"

"I don't need your help," Will said pointedly, practically spitting the words at him. "I'm a grown man and I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

"Fine," Jack said, throwing up his arms in mock defeat. "Have it yer way, but I'll jus' say this, if ye don't see a doctor, I won't leave port."

Will's eyes nearly tripled in size at Jack's words. He actually saw the blacksmith's skin go two shade paler. "You wouldn't," he practically gasped.

Jack was almost hurt that the threat of his presence had such a negative affect on Will. It wasn't as if he was going to do something terrible while in port! Honestly, the lad acted as if he had just threatened to burn his shop down! Yet Jack managed to put on a neutral mask and pretend that Will's reaction hadn't phased him at all. "It's a nice town," Jack commented casually. "Wouldn' mind stayin' on a few more days... weeks... maybe even... months?"

The horrified look that had crossed the younger man's face quickly melted away into one of rage and indignation. "Don't you _dare_ threaten me Jack Sparrow," he growled dangerously. "I don't give I damn if you are a pirate, you have no right to make threats in _my_ shop!"

_Touchy li'l whelp isn't he?_ "Not threatin'," Jack said smoothly, refusing to be pulled into Will's foul mood. "Jus' makin' idol chat is all." He smirked at the younger man's visibly reddened face as he swaggered towards the door. "I suppose I'll be seein' ye around town, won't I darlin'?" He added as he waved a hand over his shoulder and walked out the store. He was a good few feet away before he finally heard the sound of metal banging on metal, only much louder and fiercer then usual. He had upset Will, that much was clear, but hopefully the threat itself would work out well enough on its own. Of course, Jack was ready and willing to take drastic measures if Will refused to comply to his request.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Ten**

When Jack came by the Hobbs home, he was surprised to see Sarah sitting outside on the steps of the house sewing something. It was the first time he had seen the girl without Nathan. Jack frowned at the realization. If Sarah was alone, then where was Nathan?

"Afternoon, lass," Jack greeted. He was rewarded with a startled gasp as Sarah finally noticed his presence.

Sarah shivered slightly, placing a slim hand on her chest as if to calm her rapidly beating heart before looking up at Jack with wide grayish green eyes. "C-Captain Sparrow," she gasped, still attempting to recover from the slight shock. "What brings you here?"

"Jus' passin' by," Jack said casually. "I was on me way ta the smithy ta see Mr. Turner. Figured I'd take another shot at talkin' ta him 'bout his little problem."

"Oh," Sarah began, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. Jack couldn't tell if it was a result of general nervousness or the mere mention of Will's name that caused it, but she seemed completely incapable of forming a sentence now. "Oh uh... well, you see... M-Mister... Mr. Turner..."

"He's not at the shop today," said a shrill voice from directly behind Sarah. Jack frowned as he looked up and saw Mrs. Hobbs standing in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest as she gave him a stern look. It was obvious from the sour expression on her face that the woman had not gotten over her first impression of him. "I made him stay in bed and leave the shop closed. The lad's a good boy, but he's too hard working for his own good. He needs to find himself a good woman to knock some sense into him."

Jack had to fight back a laugh at the comment. At least he wasn't the only one that thought Will worked too hard. "Well, that's good ta know," Jack smiled. "May I see him?"

Mrs. Hobbs's frown deepened at the question, but she nodded reluctantly, allowing him enough space to pass between her. Jack flashed her his most winning smile, but to no avail. She obviously didn't like him nor did she trust him, but that was no real loss. He wasn't here to see her after all.

As Jack climbed the steps to Will's room, he was slightly surprised to see Nathan sitting cross legged on the floor across from another child around his age. The other boy in question was no where near as handsome as Nathan, but Jack realized that it could very well be his paternal bias that told him that. The other child was pudgy, covered with freckles, and had a mass of dark brown curls on top of his head. When the two boys turned to look at him, he noticed that the child had a piggish looking nose and dark, beady green eyes. No, it wasn't just paternal bias, this child was positively beastly when compared to handsome little Nathan.

"Cap'n Jack!" Nathan cheered happily as he scrambled to his feet and rushed towards Jack, surprising the pirate by engulfing him in a warm hug. Jack stiffened for a moment, completely unused to being hugged by children, but he forced himself to relax when he reminded himself that Nathan was _his son_ and it was perfectly alright for him to be affectionate towards the boy.

"'Ello there lad," Jack greeted, forcing himself to return the child's hug. "Whose yer li'l friend?" he asked, referring to the pudgy child who was currently starring at them, opened mouthed with shock.

"That's Eustace," Nathan said, pointing at the other boy.

"Hello," Eustace said shyly, raising a hand in greeting.

Jack had to fight the urge to wrinkle his nose in distaste at the boy's name. "Eustace"? Of all the things his parents could have named the lad, they choose Eustace? "'Ello," Jack returned. "What are ye two fine young lads up to?"

"We're playing pirates," Nathan explained. "One of our men was injured on a raid and Eustace was about to operate."

"I'm a doctor," Eustace explained.

At this, Jack had to laugh. It figured that Nathan would have a friend who was equally fascinated with pirates. "I see," he chuckled. "An' where is the patient."

"Right here," Eustace said, pointing down at the crudely made wooden man, who was nothing more then a few sticks wrapped in a pile of cloth with wooden arms and legs.

"He was shot in the leg, so we're going to chop it off," Nathan said, his tone strangely serious. "Wanna help?"

"Some other time," Jack said, patting the boy's head affectionately. "Where's ye Da'?"

"He's napping. Mrs. Hobbs said he wasn't aloud to leave his room today. I think he's in trouble."

"Not in trouble," Jack assured, "jus' not feelin' like himself."

"Is he sick?" Nathan asked concern clear in his voice.

Jack mentally quirked an eyebrow at the boy's comment. He would have thought that Nathan would have picked up on that by now. After all, it was obvious from Will's appearance that he was ill and just about everyone around the blacksmith was constantly trying to convince him to see a doctor. Yet Nathan seemed completely taken aback by the very idea that his father was sick! The only possible explanation that Jack could conceive was that everyone had been trying to keep Nathan in the dark about Will's gradually decreasing health and Jack felt like a fool for being the one to actually let it slip that the boy's father was sick.

"Don't ye worry 'bout a thing, lad," Jack said, side stepping the boy's question. "I'm jus' gonna pop in an' have a quick word with him."

Nathan said nothing. He merely nodded as he allowed Jack to pass him by and head towards Will's door.

Jack paused before entering, deciding it would be better to knock instead of just walking in on Will while the younger man was still asleep. He knocked gently, still unsure whether or not the younger man was asleep. Of course, when the only reply was the soft groans and the sound of someone retching their guts out, Jack decided that Will was indeed awake and decided to enter in spite of what the younger man might think. He was also mindful to quickly close the door behind him before the children could hear anything.

Upon entering, Jack was greeted by the sight of Will on his hands and knees, emptying the contents of his stomach into a near by chamber pot. Jack visibly cringed at the very sight. The poor young man looked even worse since the last time Jack had seen him (which, by his count, was only three days ago). Jack frowned as he went to kneel down beside the younger man, rubbing his back soothingly. The young man stiffened at the contact, but the fact that he was overcome by dry heaves prevented him from instantly turning to look the pirate in the eyes, but Jack could tell that Will knew he was there.

"What are you doing here?" Will asked between coughs.

Jack shrugged, resting his hand on Will's back affectionately. "Said I wasn' leavin' 'til ye saw a doctor."

Will groaned as he sat back on his heels, his face glistening with sweat and his skin an unpleasant shade of green. Not to mention the fact that the poor boy was getting thinner by the minute. "And how do you know that I haven't?" Will challenged.

Jack scoffed, suddenly remembering Mrs. Hobbs's words from earlier.

_"He needs to find himself a good woman to knock some sense into him."_

He may not be a woman, but Jack would be more then happy to take it upon himself to knock some sense into the younger man's thick head. "Sorry, luv," Jack chuckled, "but I know ye didn'."

Will let out yet another groan as he got to his feet and made for his bed, which looked rumpled and slept in. He sat back down with an audible sigh. Without invitation, Jack went ahead and sat down beside the younger man. He wasn't at all surprised when Will scooted away from him, he'd actually been expecting it, but he decided not to comment on it.

"I don't want to talk about being sick," Will said stubbornly.

"Fine," Jack shrugged. "We can talk 'bout somethin' else."

"As if I want to talk to you anyway," Will muttered, but Jack pretended not to hear him.

"I hear tell ye're lookin' fer a wife," he said casually.

Will flushed slightly at the other man's comment and Jack was happy to see the younger man look embarrassed rather then indignant for once. "I'd rather not talk about _that_ either."

"Now we've got to talk 'bout _somethin'_," Jack teased. "Ye've probably got quite the score o' lovely young lasses knockin' on yer door, beggin' ye ta put a pretty li'l ring on their dainty fingers."

"It's not like that Jack," Will said tightly, getting a bit more irritated then Jack had expected. "_I'm_ not like that and you know it."

"I know," he said seriously. "An' I also know that if ye really wanted ta get married, ye would 'ave done so by now."

"I _wanted_ to get married," Will corrected. "I don't anymore. After Nathan was born, I thought that the best thing to do, the _right_ thing to do, would be to get married so that he could have a normal life... it never happened. I was always too busy with work or taking care of Nathan, so there wasn't much time for anything else."

_So he really was celibate for five years!_ "An' there's somethin' else, isn't there lad?" Will frowned at Jack's question, cocking his head to the side in confusion. "There's more too it then that. Ye must o' had other reasons ta want ta get hitched."

Will flushed, turning away from Jack in slight shame. He was surprised to see a single tear roll down the corner of Will's eye, before the blacksmith quickly whipped it away; obviously hoping that Jack hadn't spotted it. "It was a stupid reason..." he muttered shamefully.

Jack smiled knowingly at that, placing a firm hand on Will's shoulder. He already knew the answer now, but he'd rather have Will say it out loud. "Go on, lad," Jack pushed. "Ye can tell me. Whatever ye say stays between us."

"As if I can trust you," Will grumbled, but his voice had suddenly tightened with emotion, and Jack knew right away that Will wasn't going to be able to keep quite about his desire much longer. "I... I wanted to have more children," he confessed. The blacksmith's shoulder's instantly slumped at his own words, his head hanging low in a defeated manner. It was as if he had just said something vial and revolting, but Jack actually thought that it was quite... sweet.

"There ain't nothin' wrong with that, lad," Jack assured, rubbing the younger man's shoulders supportively. "It's only natural for ye ta want another baby. Nathan's gettin' older an' all, pretty soon he won't need ye as much an' ye jus' want a baby ta take care o' an' such. Always figured ye were the family type-"

"You don't understand do you?" Will blurted out. "I wanted to have another child so badly that I was willing to marry someone that I didn't _love_ just to get what I wanted! I'm a terrible person for even considering such a thing!"

"Ye're not terrible," he soothed, scooting closer so that he could properly wrap an arm around the young blacksmith. Jack suddenly liked very much the way this conversation was going. He enjoyed the way that Will was opening up to him, telling him things that he probably hadn't told anyone else. He didn't know where this display of emotion had come from, but he was...

_Wait a minute, when has Will Turner ever been emotional?_

Jack all but froze at the thought, backing away from the other man slowly. The pieces were slowly starting to come together and he felt like the world's biggest fool for not seeing it all before! Will's illness had occurred soon after their argument. He was getting thinner, vomiting constantly, and, if the rumpled bed were any indication, completely drained of energy. Not to mention this bizarre emotional outburst! "Ye're pregnant."


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Eleven**

Time seemed to slow down for Jack as he watched the blacksmith nod his head in shame, giving off the feeling that he had just committed the worst crime imaginable. "Yes," he confessed shamefully, "I am."

Jack felt the sweat begin to pour out of him. The room suddenly seemed very vast and empty and he couldn't help but feel as if the few inches between him and Will were thousands of miles. A tidal wave of emotions suddenly came crashing down upon him, rendering him all but immobile. He didn't know what emotion was stronger; confusion, fear, or... joy.

"H-how?" Jack asked after what seemed like an eternity. "How did this happen? I mean, I know _how_ it happened, but... well, _how_ did it happen?"

Will didn't turn around, he seemed to be against the idea of making eye contact with Jack at the moment, but he did square his shoulders and sit up straighter. "You are either a testament to male fertility, Jack Sparrow," he began blankly, "or the Pelegostos made it so that I will be forever carrying your seed."

_I'd personally like ta think it's the former,_ Jack thought, but decided to keep the words to himself. The pirate frowned as an uneasy silence settled upon them. Jack knew that the silence wasn't coming from the fact that neither had anything to say, but rather that they had _too many_ things to say. There were just too many questions! There were too many bloody things that he needed to ask, needed to say, wanted to say, but for some reason, none of them would come out his mouth. "Why didn' ye tell me sooner?" he asked finally.

"Because you would stay," Will sighed. "It's what you're thinking of doing right now, I know it. You don't seem to grasp the fact that I want you out of my life, so I knew that if I were to tell you I was pregnant you would refuse to leave my side."

"An' with good reason!" Jack snapped. "Ye've been bloody killin' yerself these past few days when ye _knew_ that ye were pregnant. Whose ta say that ye won't end up losin' this baby jus' 'cause ye want ta be a stubborn whelp."

In an instant Will turned and glared daggers into the other man, his eyes flashing with hate and annoyance, but Jack didn't so much as flinch at the look. He had, sadly, gotten quite used to it. "Need I remind you, Jack, that I already have _one_ child that I am currently taking care of? I _have_ to work myself to death in order to take care of Nathan! If I don't provide for him, then who will?"

"Need I remind ye that Nathan is _my_ son, too?" he hissed, mindful of the fact that the four year old in question might still be on the other side of the door.

"And what's your point?" Will challenged, folding his arms across his chest.

"Me point is that if ye asked me to, I'd be more than happy ta help take care o' me boy," Jack stated irritably. "I take care o' what's mine lad."

"First," Will began, his anger suddenly lifting him to his feet so that he could tower over Jack menacingly, "the only thing I have _ever_ seen you take care of, Jack Sparrow, was yourself and you don't even seem to do that good of a job at it. Second, Nathan is not _yours_, he's _mine_, and this baby is _mine_ and we don't need _your_ help."

Jack frowned as he got to his feet quickly, having every intention to continue to argue with the younger man, but the rational part of his mind urged him against it. Pregnant or not, Will was saying these things out of anger. Jack needed to be the level headed one right now. He needed to reason with Will, not squabble with him. His frown eased slightly as he looked Will up and down. The blacksmith had a good inch on him at the most, but he had shed so many pounds that Jack wouldn't be surprised if he out weighted the younger man at the moment. He wouldn't be like that for long though. Soon Will would gain weight, he'd get bigger and his condition wouldn't be so easy to hide.

"Tell me then William," Jack began smoothly, "what is yer plan for the comin' months? What are ye goin' ta do 'bout the baby?"

"What do you mean?" Will asked, his brow furrowing slightly in confusion.

"Ye're obviously goin' ta keep this baby aren't ye?"

"Of course I am," Will said indignantly, appalled that Jack would even question whether or not he would keep the unborn child growing inside of him.

"Then ye must have some sort o' plan for the next few months? Tell me, what are ye goin' ta tell yer landlord when ye start ta get all round an' big with baby? Do they know that ye were the one that carried Nathan?"

"No," Will answered sheepishly. "They think his mother died in child birth."

"I see," Jack mused sarcastically. "What 'bout when ye get too big to run the shop for Mr. Hobbs? How are ye goin' ta provide for our young son? An' what'll happen when it comes time ta actually give birth? Ye can't explain away that no matter how good o' a liar ye are an' ye, Will Turner, are a _terrible_ liar."

Jack had to hold back a smirk as Will's whole face began to turn bright red with annoyance, anger, and embarrassment. It was clear that he hadn't thought of any of those things and he was embarrassed that Jack had actually caught him. "I can take care of myself," Will said through gritted teeth. "You seem to forget that I've done this before-"

"An' ye seem ta be forgettin' that when ye went through this ye really only had ta take care o' yerself an' yer unborn child. Now, ye have ta take care o' yerself, yer unborn child, an' Nathan."

"And what would you have me do? Drop everything and run off with you? I know what you're getting at Jack and it won't work. I'm not the naïve young fool that you met six years ago. If you think that you can just play with my mind enough until I give in and come to your bed again then you're wrong. You can't have me or my children."

Jack groaned as he grabbed Will's shoulders and pressed the younger man forcibly towards him. Before the pregnant young man could push himself off of him, Jack wrapped his arms around Will tightly, practically crushing the younger man's frame against his own. They were practically nose to nose at that point and as tempting as it was to close the space between them and place a hungry kiss on Will's wonderfully soft lips, Jack knew he had to resist the urge.

"Stop lyin' ta yerself," Jack all but hissed. "Ye want me."

"I feel nothing for you," Will shot back.

"That's not true an' ye know it. If ye did feel nothin' fer me, then ye wouldn't have slept with me two weeks ago."

Will blushed at the pirate's words as he squirmed uncomfortably in his arms. "You forced yourself on me!"

"Ye're stronger than me," Jack pointed out, not caring that the words were slightly emasculating, "ye could o' easily fought back. Sides, ye're not fightin' back now." With that declaration, Jack finally closed the gap between them, gently kissing the younger man in his arms. Will, once again, stiffened in slight surprise, doing his best to resist the urge to kiss back. To the younger man's credit, he did a remarkably good job at faking disinterest, but Jack knew he wanted him. He had to! There was no way that Jack Sparrow could want someone who didn't want him back.

The pirate smiled mentally as he felt Will relax into the kiss, flexing his arms free so that he could rest his hands on Jack's shoulders. The pirate allowed them to be free, but soon realized that it was a mistake as the younger man ended up pushing Jack instead. Jack hissed as the palm of Will's hand connected with a rather tender spot on his shoulder and instead of letting go, Jack's grip tightened and the two ended up falling back onto Will's bed, the blacksmith conveniently landing on top of the pirate.

Will frowned as he lifted himself off of Jack just enough to give the pirate a curious look. "You hissed," Will stated matter-of-factly as he poked Jack's left shoulder again and was rewarded with another hiss of pain. Before the pirate could protest, Will all but tore his shirt open, exposing the freshly inked spot on his chest right above his heart. Jack squirmed uncomfortably as he watched the younger man's brown eyes widen as he took in the sight of his newest tattoo. It was a slightly plain inking of a banner over a heart with "Nathan" written elegantly upon it. It wasn't very originally, but Jack had thought it expressed his feelings for his young son quite clearly. "I told you not to!" Will said angrily. "You never listen to me."

Jack shrugged as he pinned the younger man with a slightly sheepish smile. "Pirate," he said simply.

Will was all set to give Jack a good tongue lashing for going behind his back and getting their son's name tattooed to his chest, but the two were interrupted.

"Daddy! I'm hungry," Nathan's voice whined as the four year old entered the room.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twelve**

Jack practically felt the younger man turn bright red as little Nathan stared at them with wide questioning eyes. Jack had to admit that he himself found his own cheeks turning a bit pink as he mentally willed the toddler to stop staring and close the door before someone else caught them in their increasingly awkward position.

"N-Nathan," Will began as he awkwardly pulled himself off of Jack. "This isn't what it looks like."

His words seemed to fall on deaf ears as Nathan all but squealed in delight as he bounced over to the bed and scrambled into his father's arms. "Yay!" he cried joyously. "You made up with Cap'n Jack! I'm so happy! Are you two going to get married now? Are we going to be a family?"

Jack smiled smugly at the boy's questions as he took the opportunity to get out of bed and close the door before someone heard too much. As soon as he shut the door, he turned back to see Will trying to calm Nathan, who was all but beaming with excitement and joy as he squirmed in the blacksmith's lap. "Nathan, darling," Will tried again, this time placing a soothing hand on the boy's cheek as if willing the child to calm himself, "I'm afraid you just saw something you weren't supposed to. You see, Captain Jack and I... well, we aren't exactly-"

"Whose hungry?" Jack cut in quickly causing Will to pin him with a foul look. The fact of the matter was that Jack didn't want Will to tell Nathan that they weren't in love. Will probably didn't realize it, but Nathan desperately wanted the two to be together. Jack still remembered when Nathan had suggested he and Will get married. It wasn't just childish innocence that had prompt the child ask him to marry his father, it was a general want for the two to fall in love. It was almost as if a part of Nathan _knew_ that Jack was his other father.

"I am! I am!" Nathan said cheerfully bouncing happily on Will's lap.

"Well then why don't I take ye an' yer Da' out for a nice hot meal?" Jack suggested. "The two o' ye look like ye could use a good meal."

Nathan smiled as he all but jumped off of Will's lap and ran to Jack, wrapping his arms tightly around the pirate's waist. Jack was embarrassed to find himself stiffen yet again, almost as if on reflex, as Nathan hugged him tighter.

_Calm down Sparrow. There ain't nothin' wrong with huggin' Nathan. He's yer child after all!_

"Thank you Cap'n Jack," Nathan said politely, giving the pirate an extra squeeze.

"Yer welcome, lad," Jack said, patting the child on the head awkwardly. "Now go get ready."

Nathan nodded before hurrying off to get ready. Once he had left, Will practically slammed the door behind him before turning around and glaring daggers at pirate. "Just what do you think you're doing?" Will asked testily.

"Jus' tryin' ta keep ye from sayin' somethin' ye'll regret," Jack said simply.

"Regret?" Will repeated. "Regret what? Telling my son the truth?"

"Not _exactly_ the truth, jus' yer version of the truth."

Will frowned, folding his arms across his chest challengingly. "Just what are you implying?"

"Obviously ye weren't exactly plannin' on tellin' Nathan that I'm his Da' now, were ye?" Jack pointed out. "_Or_ that yer 'bout ta have another baby."

"Well, obviously you don't realize that there's nothing easy about explaining to a four year old how children are conceived, especially in a situation like ours," Will countered wearily. "Jack I don't think you really grasp the enormity of our situation. Nathan is growing _attached_ to you, he's developing _feelings_ for you and I don't want to see him get hurt when he realizes that he can't keep you!"

"Ye really don't believe in me, do ye lad?"

"Let me tell you what I believe Jack," Will all but growled. "I believe in the fact that you _will_ leave. I believe that once things get too tough you will turn tail and run. I believe that you haven't changed at all in the last five years and that you are still a selfish pirate. Most of all, I believe that you will break Nathan's heart and you won't care."

"Jus' give me a chance," Jack half pleaded. "I know ye don't trust me-"

"With good reason."

"-but ye have ta admit that Nathan deserves to know the truth an' sooner or later _ye're_ goin' ta have ta explain ta him what happened between us. Why not jus' start things off by tellin' him that I'm his Da' an' that ye're havin' another baby? Ye won't be able ta hide the baby from him for much longer."

Will instantly scowled in displeasure at Jack's comment. The younger man looked as if he were ready to explode from pure annoyance alone. He had done a good job at ruffling the younger man's feathers, that was for certain, but Jack was feeling quite annoyed himself. After all, he had been having essentially the same conversation with Will for weeks and yet the stubborn young blacksmith refused to even hear his side of the argument! Jack's only hope was that the growing life inside of the smith's body would be enough to make him realize that time was running out and that their little secret couldn't be kept in the dark for much longer.

"Fine," Will conceded angrily. "Have it your way, but if this blows up in our faces-"

"I know, I know," Jack sighed, throwing his arms up in a sign of peace, "I'm gone."

With that, Will stormed out of the room, managing to connect his shoulder with Jack's with a hard and (from Will's perspective) satisfying thump. The pirate grimace at the rough contact, but managed to hold back the groan that was bubbling inside of him.

_Stubborn whelp! Doesn' even know how to lose a bloody argument!_

-+-+-+-

In Jack's opinion, dinner was going fairly well. Nathan, much to Will's dismay, spent the majority of the meal on Jack's lap, happily listening to every word that came out of the pirate's mouth with great interest and wonder. Jack had spent a good portion of the meal telling Nathan about mermaids and other sea creatures, enjoying the way the toddler's eyes lit up at every extravagant gesture. Will, bitter whelp that he was, calmly sat at the opposite side of the table pretending to be supportive and kind, but secretly glaring daggers at Jack when he thought Nathan wasn't looking. Jack didn't know much about families, his own family life being a disaster for all parties involved, but he had a feeling that the three of them were getting fairly close to actually becoming one. All he needed was to find a way for Will to stop hating him and then life would be perfect.

"Are you and Daddy going to get married now?" Nathan asked out of the blue, repeating the question that he had asked earlier and had never gotten answered.

Will blushed, Jack squirmed, and neither man really knew how to answer the question. They spent a few minutes silently exchanging looks, trying to decide who was now responsible for telling the child the ugly truth, before Will finally decided that it was his duty to explain the situation to Nathan. For Will's sake, Jack wished they had not been in such a public place, but he was generally grateful that at long last his son would know the truth.

"Nathan," Will began, scooting his chair so that he was sitting closer to Nathan and Jack. Jack didn't want to say it out loud, but he positively adored Will's "parental tone." The way he spoke to Nathan was like a warm embrace; gentle yet reassuring you that you were safe and loved. There was a slightly perverse desire inside of Jack that yearned for the blacksmith to speak to him in that tone, yet he knew it would never happen. "Captain Jack and I are not going to get married."

"Why not?" Nathan asked, his lower lip trembling in distress.

"Because we're men darling," Will explained, gently stroking the four year old's cheek. "Two men cannot get married to each other, it's against the law."

Nathan nodded his head slowly, disappointment clear in his dark brown orbs. "So we're not going to be a family?"

"I wouldn't say that, lad," Jack cut in, wrapping his arms around the toddler a bit tighter. The hurt look on Nathan's face and been too much for him to bare and Jack realized at that moment that he would do anything he could to never see such a look on his son's sweet face ever again. "Ye see we're family already."

The words were out before he could stop himself, not that he wanted to, and the look of horror on Will's face told the pirate very clearly that the younger man had not wanted that subject to come up tonight.

"Really?" Nathan asked curiously. "How?"

"Because I'm yeri_other_ Da'," Jack said simply, proud that he had actually gotten the words out without bursting into laughter at the mere absurdness of them.

"I have _two_ Daddies?" Nathan asked, his brow furrowing in confusion. Again, Jack had to do his best not to laugh, but the question coupled with the look on the child's face made the task next to impossible.

"That's right."

"How?"

Jack allowed his eyes to wander over towards Will only to see that the blacksmith was giving him the most hateful look he had ever seen. Slouching back in his chair, arms folded over his chest, lips pressed into a tight line, and chocolate brown orbs nearly black with hate. Jack knew right away that he would not be receiving any help from Will Turner when it came to explaining their complicated situation to their son. "That's a very good question, lad," Jack said slowly, stalling for time as he gathered his jumbled thoughts. "Ye see, usually it takes a man an' a woman ta make a baby, but yer Da' an' I are a special case."

"How?" Nathan cut in. "How are babies supposed to be made."

Jack groaned inwardly. Now he _really_ wished that they weren't in such a public place! "Well, when two people, a man an' a woman, are very much in love they decide to make a baby."

"How?"

"By givin' each other a special 'hug'. Now normally, only when a man an' a woman hug like this do they make a baby, but a spell was placed on yer Da', so when I hugged him we ended up makin' ye." Jack suddenly caught the sound of a loud groan at that last comment and wasn't surprised to see that it had come from Will, nor was he surprised to see that the blacksmith was now bright red.

"So... Daddy didn't want me?" Nathan asked carefully, sadness and worry suddenly mingling with confusion.

"Of course I wanted you Nathan," Will assured, reaching across the table to place a soothing hand on the boy's cheek. "I wanted you more then anything. You're my son and I love you."

"But..." he began again, lower lip now trembling with worry.

"You were a miracle," Will continued, ignoring any of the doubt that the child was suffering from. "You're the best thing that has ever happened to me and not a day goes by in which I don't thank God that I have you."

Jack smiled as the worried look on Nathan's face disappeared and was quickly replaced by one of pure joy. "I'm sure ye'll feel the same way 'bout the new baby," Jack muttered and instantly regretted it. He had forgotten that Nathan was still sitting on his lap, so the child had heard exactly what he had said.

"New baby?" Nathan repeated as he turned to give Jack another questioning look.

Jack blanched as he saw the hateful look reappear on Will's face. He truly hadn't meant for Nathan to hear that! "That's right lad," Jack said awkwardly. "Yer Da' an' I are gonna have another baby... ye'll be a big brother."

"Really?" Nathan asked excitedly, bouncing on the pirate's lap in pure joy. "I get another Daddy _and_ a new baby?"

Jack frowned as he turned and looked at Will. The blacksmith looked about as confused as he felt. Neither had been expecting Nathan to take the news so well. "That's right, son," Will confirmed awkwardly. "In a few months you'll have a baby brother or sister."

"Yay!" Nathan cheered as he threw his arms around Jack's neck, burying his face into the pirate's chest. "I get a pirate Daddy and a baby! I'm so happy! I love you Daddy! I love you Cap'n Jack!"

"There's no need ta be so formal son," Jack laughed, wrapping his arms around the child and willingly returned the embrace. "I'm yer father! Call me Papa."

"I love you Papa Jack," Nathan repeated as he snuggled closer to the pirate's heart.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Thirteen**

If Jack had been reluctant to leave before, then he was simply dead set against the idea now. The thought of leaving Will pregnant and alone was the last thing on his mind, but that didn't mean that the blacksmith, stubborn as ever, approved of Jack's presence especially since Jack had practically become his shadow. Everywhere Will went Jack was not far behind. The pirate was constantly with him, making sure that he was comfortable and eating properly.

"Don't you have anything better to do?" Will had asked him irritably. "A ship to run? A crew to captain? You can't possibly spend all your time fretting over me."

"Actually," Jack had replied smugly, "I can. Ye see, since ye were bein' such a stubborn little whelp an' all, I decided ta go ahead an' let the Pearl go while I stay an' watch over ye."

The look on Will's face was almost enough to make up for the loss of his beloved ship. He had given the order for Gibbs to go ahead and set sail without him before he had discovered that the blacksmith was pregnant. It was a hard decision at first, but he knew that it was the only way to get Will to comply. Ironically, he now knew that Will didn't need to see a doctor, but things were still working in his favor. He had told Gibbs to come back for him in three months, that gave him more then enough time to not only win Will over, but convince the blacksmith to come away with him.

There was no way that Jack was going to go ahead and allow Will to keep yet another child from him. He had helped conceive both Nathan and the babe that Will was now carrying and he would be damned if he was just going to turn his back on them. They were _his_ children too, whether Will wanted to admit it or not, and he was going to be a part of their lives.

"Tell me darlin'," Jack began ideally as he watched William work over a piece of metal. He couldn't tell what it was going to be, but he knew it wouldn't be anything special. "Whatever happened ta that sword ye were makin' fer me?"

"Why?" Will asked simply as he continued to pound away at the metal in front of him.

"Jus' wonderin'," Jack said casually. "After all, I did pay good money fer it."

"You only paid _half _the price," Will stressed as he turned to give Jack a hard look. "If you want that money back-"

"Wouldn' dream o' takin' a thing from ye luv," Jack cut in smoothly. "Like I said, I was jus' thinkin' out loud is all."

Jack watched as the younger man visibly cringed at his words before getting back to the task at hand. He knew how much Will hated it when he called him things like "darlin" and "luv", but that didn't stop him from saying it. After all, the annoyed look on his face was half the fun.

The pirate watched intently as the younger man muttered something under his breath, but the words were buried under the sound of metal pounding on metal. Jack smirked triumphantly at the scene. He was more then happy to know that he could get under Will's skin like this.

"You know you really are unbelievable," he heard Will shout before putting down his hammer once again to glare at Jack. "Do you have any idea how complicated you make things just by being around? And telling Nathan to call you Papa of all things! You should have seen the look on the faces of Mr. and Mrs. Hobbs when they heard him call you that. I had to tell them that it was just a joke that Nathan had taken too far."

"That's a good one," Jack joked. "I was wrong, ye're becomin' quite good at lyin', whelp. What'll ye tell them when the baby's born?"

"Don't start," Will warned. "This whole situation is all your fault anyway."

"I was waitin' fer ye ta place the blame on me," he grumbled only half seriously.

"Well, I have good reason to," Will shot back. "This _is_ all your fault after all and I don't appreciate the way you've been treating me lately either."

Jack frowned at the younger man's words. "What d'ya mean?"

"This whole situation," Will said testily. Apparently this rant had been building up inside of him for a while now. "I don't appreciate you coming here every day watching over me as if I don't have enough sense to take care of myself."

"Don't start," Jack groaned, unconsciously repeating Will's words from earlier.

"No, let's start," Will snapped. "In fact, let's finish this once and for all. Get out!"

The pirate felt his eyes snap open at Will's words, staring at the younger man as if he had suddenly gone insane. This argument was getting so heated so quickly that Jack felt as if he had missed most of it! Where had all this aggression come from? He hadn't exactly been provoking Will, yet the blacksmith acted as if he had just been attacked. "Ye can't be serious lad," Jack blurted out in surprise.

"I'm _dead_ serious, and I have been every single time that I've said it before. Why can't you take the hint that I don't want you around? I've asked you several times to leave yet you stay. I keep secrets from you, but you shrug it off. I actually _physically attack you_ yet you don't even care!"

"Will," Jack began calmly. It was clear that Will was merely being hormonal, that was the only explanation for this extreme over reaction.

"I hate you!" Will all but yelled. "Is that enough of a clue for you Sparrow? I don't ever want to see you again, so just leave!"

Hormonal or not, Will's words hit home. Jack actually felt himself flinch as if he had been struck. "Ye need time ta cool off," Jack muttered calmly. "I'll jus' give ye yer space." With that, the pirate left the smith, his calm demeanour betraying how shaken he truly felt. As he left, he was very conscious of Will's cry of "don't come back."

-+-+-+-

Jack groaned as he sat longingly in front of his mug of rum. It was strange, but the pirate actually felt too troubled to drink. He had managed to down two glasses, but the thought of Will's outburst yesterday was still at the front of his mind. He kept replaying the situation over and over in his mind, yet he couldn't understand why the younger man had blown up at him like that. A part of Jack had a feeling that Will had been planning this fight, as if the young smith had been waiting for the opportune moment to not only unleash all of his frustrations on him, but also kick him out of his life once and for all.

_That had ta be it,_ Jack mused, taking a sip of his rum. _He must o' been planin' this. Too bad for Will his plan isn't goin' ta work._ Captain Jack Sparrow didn't give up that easily. Especially when he still had three _very_ good reasons to stick around.

Jack sighed as he set down his mug of rum with a rather loud clank. Will was frustrating him to no end. He couldn't understand why Will didn't quite understand the fact that Jack wanted to be with him. He had volunteered to stay and take care of him while he was pregnant, left his ship behind for him, and apologized before even knowing what he had done. Those were all things that Jack Sparrow _never_ would have done for anyone else, yet Will seemed completely oblivious to his feelings.

_He either don't understand me actions or he don't want to,_ Jack concluded. It was obvious now to Jack what he should do; he was going to give Will some space and when he felt sure the pregnant blacksmith was calm enough to hear him out, he would tell him just how he felt about him. Being blunt with him was the only way to go.

"Jack Sparrow," a voice came and Jack felt himself cringe slightly at the sound.

Jack still had the broken sword on his belt and a pistol with only one shot (the rest of his ammo was back in his room) tucked away in his coat and he suddenly felt very aware of this. The last thing he wanted was some young pirate hopeful coming up to him while he was not only (practically) unarmed, but also in a rather foul mood.

"That's _Captain_ Jack Sparrow," Jack grumbled under his breath.

"Jack," the voice repeated, this time more urgent and much more familiar. "I need your help."

The pirate captain suddenly felt his stomach tighten into a knot as a slim, feminine hand suddenly grasped his shoulder. It suddenly dawned on him whose voice it was that he had been addressing. "Elizabeth."


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Fourteen**

Jack felt his bronzed face pale as he turned and saw Elizabeth Swann standing behind him. He felt his stomach turn cold, tie itself into a knot, and then disappear into a cloud of dust. It was surprising how much Elizabeth's presence was effecting him. It was just Elizabeth Swann after all, unlike with Will, Jack and Elizabeth had parted on fairly good terms. On the other hand, this was Elizabeth Swann, the woman who had broken Will Turner's heart (or at least, helped to break Will's heart. It was hard for him to say which betrayal effected the younger man more.) and was part of the reason why said blacksmith was not on the greatest terms with Jack in spite of the fact that he was currently carrying his child.

A slight groan managed to escape his lips as he took in Elizabeth's current state. In the five years since he had seen her he could honestly say that Elizabeth looked as good as ever. Her face was still as beautiful and innocent as the last time he'd laid eyes upon her and her rich brown eyes still held the same fiery spirit and rebellious nature. Her thin frame was currently wrapped in oversized men's clothes that looked as if she had been wearing them for days on end and her thick golden brown locks were currently tucked into an over sized brown hat.

_She looks like she did when I met her in Tortuga five years ago,_ he thought wearily. This wasn't a good sign. The girl was definitely in some sort of trouble again, and the fact that she had said "I need your help" only made him feel even worse about the whole situation. The last thing he wanted was to get mixed up in whatever it was that Elizabeth had gotten herself involved in.

"Jack?" Elizabeth repeated. Jack blinked a few times in surprise as he suddenly realized that he had been staring at the young woman for some time now without saying anything.

"Elizabeth," Jack began grandly, forcing a warm and slightly lecherous smile on his face. He stood with a flourish and made to engulf Elizabeth in a friendly hug, but she smartly brushed his arms away from her and placed them firmly at his side. She flashed him a coy smile to show that there were no hard feelings, but she didn't need to, Jack already knew that she wouldn't alienate him until she got what she wanted out of him. It was what he would do after all. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this unexpected reunion?"

"As I said before," Elizabeth began nervously, her eyes darting around the room as she spoke, "I need your help."

"I see," he said thoughtfully. "Well, have a seat an' tell me all 'bout it over a mug o' rum."

Elizabeth gave him a brief smile before doing as she was told. Despite his calm exterior, Jack was screaming on the inside. All he could think about was how badly he wanted to be rid of Elizabeth. If Will knew she was here... if he _saw_ them together...

_He'll never speak ta me again. He'll keep Nathan an' the baby away from me. I have ta get rid o' her. She'll ruin everythin'!_

"I didn't know what to do," he heard Elizabeth say. "When my father told me I was to marry him... I panicked! I couldn't possibly marry him. The very idea of spending the rest of my life with that man..." She shuddered at the very thought of her fiancée and Jack suddenly felt lost. Either Elizabeth had been talking while he was musing or she had just skipped a few chapters ahead in her story without telling him about it.

"Hold on, darlin'," Jack cut in. "Marriage? Ye're not talkin' 'bout the good Commodore are ye?"

Elizabeth cringed slightly at the mention of Commodore Norrington. "_Admiral_ Norrington is currently married with three children," she informed him.

Jack was suddenly grateful that he hadn't been drinking his rum when Elizabeth told him that, because would have spat it all over her. _Well he certainly has been productive these past five years!_ "Three children ye say? They all his?"

Elizabeth laughed quietly in spite of herself as she played with the cuff of her jacket. "They _are_," she stressed. "He and his wife are quite happy together."

"I'll take yer word for it," Jack shrugged, "but who is this arse that ye're so dead set against weddin'?"

Her mouth began moving about randomly, struggling to form words, but nothing ever came out. "His name's not important. He's a _lord_ that my father thought would be a good match for me. He thought that if I married someone like _him_ I'd settle down for once."

Jack nodded slowly as he took another pull at his rum. He could already tell where Elizabeth was going with all this. Unfortunately for her Jack had his own set of problems to deal with and was not interested in coming to her rescue.

"That's why I need your help Jack," Elizabeth continued. It took everything Jack had in him to keep from rolling his eyes and groaning in annoyance as he readied himself for the words he already knew were coming. "I want to join your crew so that I can be free of my fiancée. I left Port Royal in search of you. I heard that this was the last place you had been spotted."

_So this makes three fiancées fer dear Miss Swann,_ Jack mused. _Two she disliked an' one she lost. The lass can never be satisfied._ "Hasn't anyone ever told ye not ta runaway from yer problems?" Jack slurred. He was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol on him, slowing his mind and slurring his words. He suddenly wished that he could disappear. Just vanish into thin air so that he could avoid continuing this ridiculous conversation. "Abandonin' yer beau won't solve nothin', it'll only make matters worse."

"You don't understand, Jack," Elizabeth urged. "He's horrible! If I marry him I'm sure to spend the rest of my life in misery."

"An' if ye run away, ye'll have the Royal Navy after ye," he pointed out. "Ye're not the type o' lass dat can jus' up an' disappear. Yer Father an' yer _fiancée_, will likely go ta great lengths jus' ta get ye back. Would ye really be willin' ta live like dat? Never able ta know a moment's rest. Ta have ta keep lookin' over yer shoulder in fear o' the day that they'll come for ye an' take ye back ta dat horrible man whose very name is poison on yer lips an' force ye ta tie yerself ta him forever."

A slight shudder suddenly past through Elizabeth's thin frame as she took in Jack's words. She wasn't a fool, she had considered all this before and it was clear from the determined look in her eyes that she was still very much ready to go through with her plan. "I'm willing to take that chance," she told him and to her credit her voice barely wavered.

"Ye know the life o' a pirate ain't as easy or as romantic as ye think," he continued. It was a stretch, but if there was any ounce of doubt that dwelled inside of Elizabeth then Jack was going to find it. There was still a chance that he could change her mind, that he could convince her that this wasn't what she wanted and get her out of his life once and for all. "It's miserable, lonely work. Away at sea for months on end, never knowin' when ye'll set foot on land again... An' it's quite dangerous fer a pretty young lass like yerself." Jack smiled lecherously at Elizabeth's slightly confused and offended look. "There are quite a few lonely men out there dat haven't felt a woman's touch in quite a while. It wouldn't be hard ta imagine one of them forcin' themselves on ye."

A frown quickly appeared upon Elizabeth's face, but she quickly pushed it away. "That is why I want to join _your_ crew," Elizabeth stressed. "I know you won't let anything like that happen to me."

"Can't keep an eye on ye all the time lass," Jack shrugged as he finished off the rest of his rum.

Disappointment flashed in Elizabeth's eyes. Obviously she hadn't been expecting Jack to be so cold and uncaring about her fate. It was clear that she had been expecting a warm reception and a helpful pirate Captain who would be more than happy to welcome her aboard his ship. It dawned on him then that he was acting in the manner that Will had described not long ago.

_"After all, when has Jack Sparrow ever done anything out of charity?"_ He had asked him accusingly.

_I know it ain't right Will, but I'm doin' this for ye. It's better this way._ We're _better this way. She'll only come between us an' then I'll lose ye fer good._ Elizabeth Swann was as much a threat to him now as _he_ had been to Will Turner five years ago. It would be all too easy for Will to fall back in love with her. He had loved her since he was a mere boy of twelve years and it wasn't hard to imagine that those feelings were still lingering deep down inside of him. Will would not love or forgive him because he was a man, but Elizabeth was a woman. She was something to be worshiped and protected and she could easily be turned into something that Will still desired: a motherly figure for his children.

"You know Jack," Elizabeth began seductively as she moved from her place across from him to sit in a near by chair beside him. She scooted closer so that their bodies were now pressed against each other. Jack could still faintly smell the expensive soaps and perfumes that had once bathed her delicate skin even under the dirt and sweat that currently caked her clothes. "If it helps any," she began huskily, "I'm not a virgin anymore."

Unfortunately for Jack Sparrow, this time he had been drinking his rum, so when the urge to spit it out came over him, he found himself spraying rum across the now empty half of the table. To be completely honest, he wasn't really all that surprised. Elizabeth was only human, sooner or later she would desire to know more about the pleasures of the flesh (something that she had seemed very interested in during their last meeting). He was just surprised that she had told him this so bluntly. Hadn't she learned anything about using her body to further her wants? That was how she lost her second fiancée after all.

At that moment, Jack suddenly realized that he was in more trouble then he had anticipated. He hadn't had sex since he had gotten Will pregnant and all that repressed sexual energy was boiling inside of him to the point that he _knew_ if Elizabeth was foolish enough to try and kiss him, he'd be foolish enough to actually give in. He didn't want it, he didn't want _her_, but he wanted _somebody_ because Goddammit, Will Turner wasn't giving him so much as a hand shake!

_Ye know Sparrow,_ a part of him whispered as Elizabeth's delicate little hand brushed against his leg, _it ain't cheatin' if ye're not together. Will wouldn't care, he kicked ye out anyway._ Yes, Will did kick him out. Yes, Will did say he wanted nothing to do with him. Yes, Will is being a little stubborn whelp with the sex drive of the eunuch and was, as a result, ignoring all of Jack's needs. All that was very true, but none of it mattered, because Jack knew that if he so much as _allowed_ Elizabeth to sneak a kiss on his lips, he'd be betraying Will and he loved him too much to do that.

Shock waves surged through his body, causing him to sit up straighter and Elizabeth to smile cheekily, obviously thinking that she had been the one to cause that reaction. No, far from it. It was the realization of what Jack had just said to himself that made him sit so erect. _I love him,_ Jack realized. _I really do love him. He's drivin' me bloody crazy, but I love him!_

Elizabeth leaned in then, making to place a gentle kiss on Jack's lips, but he smartly turned his head to the side, causing her lips to brush against his cheek instead. She pulled back, a disappointed frown creasing her face. Jack let out a longing sigh. Her lips were quite soft and warm, but he missed the itchy feel of a moustache touching his skin.

"Come on, lass," Jack sighed as he stood up from his chair. "Ye can stay in me room tonight. We'll talk more on this in the mornin'."

Confusion was more than clear in Elizabeth's wide brown eyes. She clearly didn't know whether she had succeeded in seducing Jack Sparrow or if the pirate captain was going to take the gentlemanly route and was indeed offering her a place to sleep for the night and nothing more.

Unfortunately, Jack wasn't completely sure of which was true himself.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Fifteen**

Jack awoke the next morning feeling sick to the pit of his stomach and he couldn't be sure if it was from the alcohol he had consumed (which to be honest wasn't nearly as much as he usually drank) or the fact that Elizabeth Swann was currently sleeping in his bed. It had taken every single ounce of self restraint he could muster to keep himself from taking advantage of young woman. The truth of the matter was that he wasn't attracted to Elizabeth in the same way that he had been five years ago, but he was just so damn frustrated that he wanted some relief! Elizabeth, sweet, supple, beautiful, young Elizabeth, was there, ready and willing to participate.

Well, to be truthful Jack was well aware that she didn't have her whole heart into the act, she only wanted him to help her get away from her fiancée and was using her body as a bargaining chip. It was clear that she didn't really want to sleep with him, but it was more than what Will was giving him. The younger man despised Jack, he couldn't even stand to be in the same room as the pirate let alone sleep with him. So for Jack to find a beautiful young woman who was at least willing to sleep with him was good enough for him.

Hours after Elizabeth had fallen asleep, Jack had found himself awake and contemplating just what he should do, give in to his desires or resist temptation. It was hours before Jack realized that the best way to completely distract himself from his urges was to think about Nathan. He knew that if he ever wanted to see his young son again or the child that Will was carrying inside of him, he'd have to resist the urge to relieve his frustrations on Elizabeth.

Jack was relieved when morning came. He had never had such a worse night of sleep in his life and the unexpected knock on his door at the wee hours of the morning did not help at all. Groggily, Jack made his way to the door, careful not to wake Elizabeth. He felt his kohl-smudged eyes literally snap open at the sight of Will Turner standing at his door, a displeased look clear on his beautiful young face. The sick feeling in his stomach suddenly increased at the sight of the young man and he became extremely conscious that he had the boy's ex-fiancée asleep in his bed. True, there was no real betrayal that had taken place last night, but merely being in the same room as the girl made Jack feel exceptionally guilty.

"Will," Jack said as calmly as possible as he quickly closed the door behind him before Will could even think to look inside the room. "What brings ye here?"

"Was I interrupting something?" Will asked. If it weren't for the sarcasm in his tone Jack might have been worried.

"Course not darlin'," Jack smiled. "Unless ye're here ta yell me head off again, in which case I have some sleep to catch up on."

"Jack, it's eight o'clock in the morning," Will chided. "Most decent people are at work by now."

"Well then that raises the question of why ye aren't at work yet," he countered.

Will sighed as his brow furrowed in displeasure. Apparently the younger man had something serious to say and he wasn't exactly happy about it. "I'm here because..." Will began haughtily. "I wanted to... apologize to you."

Jack felt his jaw fall open at the younger man's words. Will Turner was apologizing to _him_? Captain Jack Sparrow? This was certainly unexpected. "Well," Jack began, but was cut off when Will pinned him with a hard threatening look.

"I still stand by what I said," Will insisted "This whole situation is your fault and I still do not appreciate the way you were treating me. But... Nathan..."

"Nathan?"

With a frustrated sigh, Will threw his left arm up in the air in exasperation and for the first time Jack realized that Will was holding something in his other hand. "He's mad about you Jack," Will told him. "I hate to admit it, but he actually _loves_ you and these last few days without you have been quite hard on him. Every time I see him, he comes to me with his wide brown eyes and asks me when you'll come by. I don't like seeing my son unhappy Jack so against my better judgement... I'm apologizing to you."

Jack was stunned to say the least. He hadn't been expecting Will to come apologize to him. "I don't think I heard an actual apology," Jack teased, a sly smile forming on his lips in spite of himself.

Will glared at him, not liking how much enjoyment Jack seemed to be getting out of this, but after weeks of being driven up the wall by the young blacksmith Jack felt that it was only right he enjoy this little moment. "I'm sorry," Will said testily. "Happy?"

"What if I'm too hurt by yer words ta except yer apology?" he countered and was rewarded with yet another one of Will's hateful looks that he had been receiving so much recently. Jack smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders innocently. "It's possible."

"Well, if such were the case then I am prepared," Will declared as he present Jack with what he had been carrying the entire time. It looked to Jack like nothing more then a pole wrapped in cloth until Will laid it in his hands. It dawned on him then exactly what it was.

Removing the cloth wrapping, Jack saw that Will had actually manage to finish the sword that he had commissioned for him. The Pirate was completely taken aback by how good of a job Will had done on the sword. It was probably the best he had ever seen. Sharpe blade, well balanced, and it even managed to gleam in the dim hallway. "When did ye finish this?" Jack asked softly, still in awe of the blade in his hand.

"It didn't take that long to make," Will shrugged. He had the air of a man who had just assisted in committing a foul, unspeakable crime and Jack had the feeling that this was about more than just an apology.

"So, does this mean I'm a good father?" Jack teased, trying his best to lighten the mood that had suddenly taken on a very serious tone.

"Stop it," Will hissed, whatever patience he had been displaying had slipped away and he was now radiating with annoyance. "It's not funny. This may be a big joke to you, but it's not."

"I don't follow."

"My son, _my son_, loves you, a pirate, a man he's only know for less then a month more than he loves me," he whispered, causing Jack to feel like the biggest ass in the Caribbean. "It isn't fair. I take care of him, I provide for him, and you... you just waltz into town and take him away from me, just like you did with Elizabeth. You don't know what it's like to give your heart to someone only to see them long for another."

Silent tears began to leak from Will's chocolate brown orbs and Jack slowly felt a lump form in his throat. Will was jealous of him! He couldn't believe it! It broke his heart just to think about how hurt Will must have felt the first time Nathan asked for Jack instead of saying hello to him. He couldn't begin to fathom the pain that had surged through Will's heart when he put Nathan down for bed and instead of the toddler telling him he loved him, he asked when he would see "Papa Jack" again. "It ain't like that Will," Jack assured, placing a comforting hand on the younger man's shoulders. He was surprised when the blacksmith didn't brush him off or move away, so he took this as his opportunity to wrap his arm around him, pressing Will's body against his. "I ain't tryin' ta steal Nathan from ye an' jus' because he loves me doesn't mean he loves ye any less."

Will scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Who would pick boring Will Turner over Captain Jack Sparrow?"

"It's not like that," Jack stressed. "Ye're his Da'. Ye're the one that's taken care o' him all these years. Who else knows what ta say ta calm him down after a nightmare? Who else knows how ta bring a smile to that little face when he's hurt himself? No body can replace ye Will. True, I might be a bit more fun an' all, but ye're the one he'll go ta first if anythin' ever happened."

"I _want_ to believe that," Will sniffed, his right hand slowly raising to his flat stomach before resting on it thoughtfully, "but I just know that when the baby's born it'll prefer you over me."

"That won't happen," Jack assured, giving the young man's shoulder a light squeeze. "Ye're a natural born father an' I'm jus' doin' the best I can. In a fair fight, ye out match me."

A small smirk graced Will's lips at that comment and Jack realized then just how long it had been since he had seen Will smile. For a moment, Jack actually left better, it seemed as if things between him and Will were actually moving in a positive direction. For once Will had come to _him_, had apologized to _him_, and had in fact admitted that he was in the wrong. Jack finally felt that he actually...

"Jack?"

The pirate felt himself stiffen at the sound of Elizabeth's tired voice coming from behind him. He didn't even bother to turn around, he was too busy focusing on the fact that Will was currently staring over Jack shoulder and directly at his former fiancée. At that moment, the pirate captain was very glad that he was the one holding the sword.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Sixteen**

Before Jack could get a word out of his mouth, before he could think of something to say that could possibly make this situation any better (or any worse), he saw the blacksmith's eyes narrow into slits, his irises turn positively red with rage, and his fist clench tightly enough to draw blood.

"I should have known," Will growled and for once the hate in his eyes not exclusively directed at Jack. "Where ever there's one _pirate_, there's no doubt another isn't far behind." Jack shuddered inwardly at the way Will had used the word "pirate." It was as if he was spitting venom at the two of them.

"Will," Jack began, and was very much annoyed to realize that his voice had overlapped with Elizabeth's own cry of surprise. There was no doubt in Jack's mind that Elizabeth had never seen Will so angry. Whenever he was around her it was nothing but puppy dog eyes and noble words. That was the old Will, the Will who hadn't had his heart broken two times. This Will was bitter and full of hate and was ready to let out his frustrations on anyone he felt deserved it.

Jack was a bit surprised when instead of staying to verbally assault the two the smith turned and left the hallway. Jack was then left with two options; stay and explain to Elizabeth why he had neglected to mention that her former fiancée was in port or chase after Will and try to salvage any chance of forgiveness. He chose the latter, seeing how telling Elizabeth his version of the truth was something he could do at any time, but running after Will was a window that would be open for a few scant minutes.

Hurriedly, Jack rushed down the stairs and after Will, catching him as he was just about to head out the door of the inn which was still virtually lifeless. Apparently the inn keeper hadn't quite fully awoken just yet and was making slow work of things.

"Will," Jack began, not really knowing exactly what else to say after that.

He was slightly taken aback when Will did indeed stop to look at him, but the displeased look on the younger man's face told him that he was not in the mood for reasoning. "What Jack?" Will snapped testily. "What do you want from me? You have your sword, my ex-fiancée, and your freedom. Why don't you just go off and leave me be."

"Weren't ye the one who was jus' tellin' me that there was a four year old boy who loved me an' needed me in his life?" Jack reminded, hoping that the mention of their son would help Will to think logically again.

"That boy doesn't know what's good for him," Will said irritably, "but _I do_, and I know for damn sure that he does _not_ need a man like _you_ in his life."

"But-" Jack began, but was cut off when he heard the sound of a floorboard creaking behind him. He didn't have to turn around to know that it was Elizabeth Swann.

Will's frown only deepened as his gaze shifted to directly behind Jack and in the direction of the blacksmith's ex-fiancée. "I should have known you two would get together," Will said bitterly, his words cutting deeply into Jack's heart, "you were made for each other." With that, Will stormed out of the tavern, slamming the door with all his might and ignoring the fact that there were still other occupants inside that were trying to sleep.

For a long time, Jack simply stood there in complete and utter shock. Moments ago, things had been going so well and now everything had just blown up in his face. For the first time in what felt like an eternity Jack had actually seen Will smile (sort of). Ironically the first, last, and only Jack had ever seen Will Turner _actually_ smile was the day he was almost hung. Now Jack had a feeling that he'd never see Will smile ever again.

"Jack!" Elizabeth all but screeched as she stalked up behind him. Jack cringed as he turned and saw Elizabeth glaring daggers at him, before slapping him roughly across the face. He couldn't quite decide whether or not he had deserved that. "How dare you! How could you forget to tell me that Will was here?"

"Ye never asked," Jack replied smugly. It wasn't as if she were still engaged to the whelp, she didn't exactly need to know where Will was all the times anymore.

Elizabeth frowned as Jack's words sank in, yet the indignant look on her lovely face was still in place. "That doesn't matter!" she argued. "You still should have told me. Will is my _friend!_ I've known him since we were twelve years old!"

"Yet ye haven't so much as talked ta him in the past five years," Jack pointed out. "Ye didn' even know what port he lived in until a few seconds ago."

Her frown deepened at that comment, her full lips pursed in dissatisfaction, and her eyes narrowed in annoyance. None of these things so much as phased Jack. After all, he was right and she knew it. However, when her deep brown eyes began to water, Jack felt himself grow uneasy. "That doesn't mean I don't care," she confessed. "When I lost Will... when he broke our engagement..."

Jack groaned inwardly, silently praying that Elizabeth would not continue her teary story. The last thing he wanted to hear was that she was still _in love_ with Will Turner. If she actually said that she still had feelings for him...

"Losing Will was the worst thing that had ever happened to me," she said tearfully. "I've been worried sick about him ever since he left Port Royal five years ago. I tried to talk him out of leaving, but he just wouldn't listen to me."

"I know how ye feel lass," Jack cut in suddenly. He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't stand the idea that Elizabeth could say any second now that she was still in love with Will, that she would lie awake at night longing for Will's touch, that she still wished that she had lost her virginity to him. Will was _his_ now. She had had her chance with him five years ago and she'd blown it. Granted, Jack had blown his chance with Will as well, but dammit, this was _his_ second chance not hers! Pushing down all the annoyance and frustration that he felt, Jack wrapped a supportive arm around Elizabeth's delicate shoulders and pressed her body firmly towards his. "The day ye an' Will left... I knew he was goin' ta do somethin' rash an', well, stupid, but I couldn' stop him. Ye know how stubborn that lad can be?"

"You may call it stubborn, but I thought that quality was quite charming," she countered as a wistful smile graced her lips and her eyes practically glazed over as she reminisced about her relationship with Will Turner.

Jack suddenly had to fight to suppress the urge to roll his eyes at the young woman and push her away from him. "Well, be that as it may, I was quite worried 'bout the lad meself. I found him here, purely by chance, an'... well..."

"What?" Elizabeth urged anxiety and worry clear in her tone. "What's wrong with him?"

"He ain't well," he told her. "Ever since the three of us have parted ways, the poor lad's gotten weak, sick. I was goin' ta tell ye 'bout him, but I knew that if I did, then ye'd want ta see him an' that'd only put some unnecessary stress on the poor lad. Too much stress could do some serious damage ta him."

The pirate watched as the young woman's face visibly paled at his words. "I didn't realize," Elizabeth whispered frightfully. "Tell me Jack, what type of illness does he have? Is it fatal?"

"Not quite sure lass. He never actually told me. Like I said, he's a stubborn boy that one."

"I should go talk to him then," she decided. "I should sit down and explain the whole situation to him."

"That's not a good idea. He's probably troubled enough as it is an' seein' ye... It was already a bloody struggle ta get him to except me bein' here. Who knows what comin' face ta face with ye again could do ta him. _I'll_ talk to him an' explain that ye're jus' here by chance."

Elizabeth nodded slowly at the older man's words. "Yes," she said reluctantly, "you're right. Go talk to him."

"Will do lass," Jack smiled as he took a step away from her. "Ye jus' stay here an' rest. I'll straighten things out with dear William."

Smiling weakly, Elizabeth went ahead and retreated back to their room while Jack went ahead to chase after Will. Truth be told, Jack was actually surprised that Elizabeth had fallen for his lie so easily. He thought for sure that the young woman would have seen right through him, but the shock of seeing her former fiancée again must have rattled her brain a bit. Elizabeth wasn't important now, however, Will was. After having a few minutes to reflect on the blacksmith's outburst Jack suddenly realized that there was jealousy in the younger man's tone. Will was actually _jealous_, but Jack couldn't tell _who_ he was jealous of.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Seventeen**

Jack felt no real rush to chase after Will. After all the time that the pirate had spent with him, he felt that he knew the lad well enough to know where he would go after blowing up like that. If anything, the first thing that Will would want to do is go and burn off some of his anger by throwing himself right into his work. What's more, he also knew that Will needed some time to cool off. Facing the young man too soon after a heated outburst might result in yet another tongue lashing and that wasn't exactly what Jack wanted at the moment. Either way, Jack was confident that he'd be able to get his point across this time. He wasn't going to leave the smithy until Will knew the truth about what had happened and understood once and for all that Jack loved him. With his new sword in his belt and determination clear in his dark brown eyes, Jack felt certain that everything would be much simpler after he spoke to Will.

He was only a few scarce feet away from the smithy, when Jack was surprised by a familiar voice.

"Papa Jack!"

Jack stopped in his tracks and turned in the direction of the voice. A smile instantly formed on his face as he saw little Nathan run towards him, arms wide open and eyes shining with pure joy. Jack let out a slightly exaggerated "oof" when the toddler finally reached him, wrapping his arms around Jack in a tight hug and knocking some of the wind out of the pirate.

"Papa Jack! Papa Jack!" Nathan squealed happily, "I missed you so much! I haven't seen you in _forever_!"

"It ain't been that long lad," Jack laughed as he patted the boy on the head.

"It felt like it," Nathan pouted as he buried his face into Jack's waist.

The pirate felt his heart clench in sympathy at the sight of the sad look on his son's face. The little boy really had missed him! It had only been a couple of days since they'd seen each other yet Nathan was ready to pour out tears of joy. Will was right, the boy truly loved him.

"Now don't ye go gettin' all soft on me lad," Jack chided playfully. "What kind o' behaviour is that fer a pirate?"

Nathan smiled at Jack's words and hugged the pirate even tighter. "I still missed you," he told him.

Jack smiled as he lifted his son up by his armpits and balanced him on his hip. "I'm surprised ta see ye out here without yer babysitter, lad," Jack commented noticing the surprising absence of Sarah. Usually the young woman would have appeared by now, out of breath and embarrassed to have lost track of her charge.

"She's sick today," Nathan informed him. "I'm spending the day with Daddy. He hasn't been very happy lately."

Jack felt his heart sink at the boy's words. Will was upset and Nathan _noticed_! This spelled trouble in his mind. He knew for a fact that Will would put up a brave front for his child, and to allow Nathan to see him weakened and emotional (whether intentional or not) was surprising to say the least.

"Really?" Jack began slowly. "What's he been so upset about?"

"I dunno," Nathan shrugged. "I jus' know he's not feelin' well. Are you going to make Daddy feel better Papa Jack?"

"Well, I'm gonna try," Jack promised. _It ain't exactly easy fer me ta make Will Turner happy._ "Where is yer Da' anyway?"

"Inside," Nathan told him simply.

"Alright then," Jack said as he lowered Nathan back to the ground. "Ye jus' stay here while yer Da' an' I talk. Don't go wanderin' too far away."

"I won't!" Nathan said indignantly as if the very idea of him wandering away offended the child.

Jack laughed softly as he gave Nathan's head an affectionate pat before heading towards the smithy. When he arrived he wasn't at all surprised to hear the fierce clanging of metal on metal, only now it was much angrier, much more rapid, as if the smith was punishing the heated hunk of metal for something it had done wrong. Jack cringed inwardly at the thought. No doubt Will was imagining Jack Sparrow in place of the defenceless object. Perhaps he should go and give the blacksmith a bit more time to cool off?

The loud pounding stopped suddenly and only the sound of laboured breathing filled the smithy. "What do you want Jack?" Will asked testily.

Jack blinked in surprise, astonished that Will had actually known he was there. "Nothin' much," Jack said idly as he lazily made his way towards Will's side. "Figured I'd stop by an' see how ye were. Perhaps pick up a few things while I was here. I could use a new chamber pot ye know."

"Sod off Jack," Will snapped, obviously not in a playful mood.

"Will," Jack began softly as he took a few steps closer toward the younger man only to have Will stubbornly turn to face the other way. "I know ye're upset 'bout this mornin', but I want ta talk ta ye 'bout what ye saw."

"There's nothing to talk about," Will said quickly. "You and Elizabeth are lovers, that much is obvious, I just wish that you had had the decency to tell me that. Although I guess I should have expected as much since the two of you always seemed to be so close."

"It ain't like that," he sighed. This wasn't going to be easy. Will was obviously feeling hurt, angry, and betrayed and reasoning with him was going to be next to impossible. "Elizabeth an' I aren't lovers. I hadn't even seen her before yesterday!"

"And I'm sure that you saw more of her last night than I have in all the years I knew her," Will snapped.

Jack felt a part of himself wither up and die at Will's comment. He was wrong. This whole time he had thought that Will had feelings for him when it was actually Elizabeth that he wanted. All this time he had really been harbouring feelings for her! The lad probably even still had dreams of marrying her and raising _his_ children with that woman! Fine. If that's what Will wanted then the fool could have her. Let his heart be broken again. Why should he care? He was Captain Jack Sparrow, he didn't need to worry himself with naive, love sick blacksmiths and their manipulative lasses. Lasses who didn't deserve men half as decent or as beautiful or as kind as Will Turner.

"We ain't did nothin' last night that we couldn't do in the daylight," Jack grumbled brokenly. This was it, he'd lost him. "We jus' talked mate, but if ye want her-"

"Do you really think I want your left overs?" Will barked indignantly as he spun around to face Jack. His cheeks were flushed red with anger and his body was practically shaking with rage. "The two of you are terrible, awful people and I don't want anything to do with either one of you!" The blacksmith practically spat the words at him and Jack was surprised to see that there were tears in Will's eyes as he spoke, yet his voice didn't waver and his eyes were only red with rage.

"The two of you use people, manipulate them into doing whatever you want and then when you're done with them you just toss them aside! It's what you did to me, to Norrington, and it's what you'll do to my children! I don't want you any where near me or my family!" With that, Will gave Jack's shoulders a good shove, sending the pirate nearly falling onto his back.

Jack was lucky to recover his balance before he could hit the ground, but whatever anger that had been inside Will seemed to have been transferred to him in that touch. As soon as he was steady on his feet once more Jack made to shove Will twice as hard as the younger man had him and literally sent the blacksmith crashing into a near by beam.

"Fuck ye Will!" Jack bellowed. He could practically feel his face turn red as the annoyance and frustration that he had been bottling inside of him came pouring out. "All ye ever do is sit around an' complain 'bout how miserable ye are an' how terrible I am as if I were planin' fer all o' this ta happen ta ye, but maybe if ye weren't such a brat ye'd open yer eyes an' see that I was actually tryin' ta help ye!"

"Help me?" Will growled, as he pushed himself off of beam he had crashed into. "Why would you want to do anything nice for me or for anyone for that matter? You only love yourself and that stupid bloody ship! Objects! That's all Jack Sparrow cares about! When it comes to people all you know how to do is take! You _take! take! take!_ until there's nothing left!"

"What d'ye know when ye've never even let me close enough ta talk ta ye, _really_ talk ta ye? Ye don't know anythin' 'bout me an' yer jus' happy that way 'cause it gives ye all the more reason ta go around sayin' that I'm a no good pirate!"

"As if you actually want to _talk_ to me! The only thing you wanted from me is to use me as a bargaining chip or sleep with me! I bet ye're glad that my father's dead so that he wouldn't have to know that you slept with his only son!"

Jack suddenly felt a part of him snap at Will's words. In an instant, Jack had slammed Will up against the beam, a loud thunk emitting from the rough action and his hands roughly pulling against the young smith's collar. His fingers were practically itching with the urge to wrap themselves around Will's neck and choke him into unconsciousness just so he could silence the stupid young man. "Shut up," Jack growled as he pressed his face mere inches away from Will's. "Ye don't know what ye're bloody talkin' about so jus' shut up."

"Or what?" Will snapped defiantly. "You'll beat me? I'm used to it! You'll kill me? Fine. That's what you've been wanting to do all this time haven't you? You were just waiting for the opportune moment and then you can take Nathan and forget about that little mistake that you left behind... I hate you."

It was then that Jack realized what he was doing. As if pushed out by Will's words, a part of Jack seemed to float away and observe the situation from somewhere over head. He could actually see himself pinning Will against the support beam, the boy's body bruised and shaking under Jack's grasps as his chattering teeth pushed out the words "I hate you" over and over again. This wasn't right. This wasn't what he wanted! He loved Will! He loved him more than anything in the world, yet here he was, hurting him, causing him more pain in this moment than he had in years.

"I'm sorry," he heard himself say, his hands loosened their grip on Will's collar and snaked around his slim waist. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean ta hurt ye."

"Leave me alone Jack," Will said weakly and Jack couldn't help but think about how strange it was that he didn't so much as bother to lift a hand to push Jack away as he said that.

"No," Jack practically sobbed. "I love ye." Only moments after he had said it did Jack finally realize that Will had blacked after speaking and was currently lying limp in his arms.


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Eighteen**

_Bugger! Bugger! Bugger!_

A wave of panic suddenly engulfed Jack as he held the blacksmith's limp body in his arms. He hadn't realized it at first, but somewhere between Will telling Jack to leave him alone and Jack confessing that he was in love with the blacksmith, the younger man had fainted. What Jack couldn't figure out was _why_ the blacksmith had fainted. Was it because Jack had told him he loved him? Was it because Jack had knocked him too hard when he slammed him against the support beam? Or was this simply a side effect of Will's pregnancy symptoms?

Jack groaned as he looked over Will's lax form. It was painfully obvious that the young blacksmith was still very much unconscious and would likely remain that way for quite a while. The younger man's limp body was completely draped against his own, his head resting on Jack's shoulder, his mouth opened ever so slightly and his arms dangling loosely at his side. Jack could practically feel his insides tie themselves into a knot at the sight. Poor William was out cold and at that moment all Jack could think of was the horrifying possibility that Will could have lost the baby because of him.

_Oh God, if Will lost the baby because o' me I'll never forgive meself._

Jack knew that Will wanted this baby more than anything, even if the younger man hadn't told him out right, and if they lost it because of some stupid fight the two of them had, then Jack knew that he didn't deserve to be in Will's life.

_Can't think that way,_ Jack told himself as he shifted Will's body in his arms. _I can't let meself get distracted now._

Jack began to look around the small smithy for a place to lay Will's prone form until he woke up. The only thing that he managed to find was a work bench currently covered with tools and scraps of metal. With a groan, Jack managed to drag Will over towards the bench. He had to shift the unconscious young man onto his left side so that he could use his right side to clear off the work bench with one wave of his arm. As he gently laid Will down on the bench, Jack suddenly realized how much trouble he was in. Even if it turned out that the baby was perfectly fine, he knew that Will would never want to speak to him again. He had physically attacked Will, to the point of knocking him unconscious and possibly giving him a rather nasty lump on his head. This was much worse than being spotted with Elizabeth in his room. This he did not expect to recover from.

_Ye really done it this time Sparrow,_ he thought grimly as he began stroking Will's cheek with the back of his hand as if expecting the act to help revive the unconscious young man. The color had drained from Will's face causing the smith to take on the appearance of the freshly dead, but he was still warm, still breathing. _Ye'll be lucky if ye'll ever recover from this one. Not that ye deserve ta._

Time crawled by at a sickeningly slow past. Minutes, hours, days, years seemed to past as Jack stood by Will's side, stroking his cheek worriedly as he sent the occasional glance towards his lower regions, each time praying that he didn't see so much as a single drop of blood. After what felt like several life times, Will's eyes started to flutter. A soft moan escaped parted lips and before Jack knew it, foggy chocolate brown orbs were lazily taking in their surroundings.

"Awake at last I see," Jack heard himself say. His tone was lighter and more casual than he felt inside and the way that Will practically flinched at the sound of his voice was heart breaking. The motion seemed completely unintended, but that didn't stop it from eating Jack up inside. "Never thought I'd see Will Turner go down so easy. Usually takes a good whack from a shovel ta take ye down whelp."

Will didn't bother to respond to the joke, he didn't even seem to hear it as he sat up shakily from his position. His eyes still had a strange glassy look about them, but Jack knew that Will was lucid enough to be aware of where he was. Carefully, the younger man turned himself so that he could easily slide off of the bench and slowly made to stand on his own two feet. So that was it? Will was just going to ignore him now. This certainly was a new tactic that he hadn't used before and frankly Jack already liked it less than Will biting his head off. Captain Jack Sparrow could take a lot of things, but he could not take being ignored.

Jack watched angrily as the blacksmith began to take a few wobbly steps, holding his hands out in front of him as if trying to feel his way around the smith. Suddenly the young man's steps began to falter and Jack saw him tip over far too much to his right side. Jack was there in an instant, arms wrapped securely around Will's waist and pressing the resisting form against his body.

"Jease whelp," Jack gasped as he caught the younger man. "Ye alright?" Of course he wasn't alright! He had just fainted and was probably still feeling off because of it, but Jack knew Will's automatic reply would be-

"I'm fine," he said in a huff as he tried and failed to push himself away from Jack.

"No ye're not. I'm takin' ye home whelp before ye hurt yerself."

Before Jack could so much as drag Will towards the door, the younger man shifted in his arms so that he was facing him and pinned the pirate with a very serious look. "Jack," Will began as he shifted his weight so that he wasn't resting so heavily against Jack. "I want to know what happened."

Jack frowned in confusion at the young man's question. Obviously Will was still a bit out of it from the blow to the head, so it wasn't too surprising that he didn't remember passing out or why for that matter. "Ye fainted, luv," Jack said simply. "Ye had a-"

"Not that," Will cut in. "I want to know what happened between you and Elizabeth."

Jack felt the color practically drain from his face. He hadn't been expecting Will to ask that question. He'd figured that the blacksmith would rather just continue hating him than actually ask for the truth. What's more even if he did tell Will the truth, there was no real guarantee that the younger man would even believe him. Telling Will what had actually happened might just make their current situation even worse (if that were at all possible).

"Nothin' happened," Jack said honestly.

"Then why was she in your room?"

Jack groaned inwardly at the question. There really was no easy answer was there? "She ran away an' came lookin' for me. She didn' have no where ta stay so I offered her me bed. That's it."

"Did you sleep with her?"

_Someone's in a very blunt mood._ "I assure all that went on last night was _sleepin'_."

"Did you ever want to?"

_Shit._ Once again Jack felt his face turn almost completely white at that question. The only truthful answer was yes, but he already knew that that was the wrong answer. He knew that Will wanted to hear him say no, to tell him that he had too much respect for the blacksmith to ever even consider doing something so underhanded and low, but that would be a lie and Will wanted to hear the truth.

"I did," Jack said truthfully.

Will turned his head downward suddenly unable to face the pirate. Jack knew then that he should have lied. It had been stupid of him to think he could get away with telling the truth, but it was too late now to take it back. His words were in Will's head now, haunting him, torturing him and putting an end to any chance Jack had at being with Will.

"I didn't expect you to be so honest." Will's words were practically a whisper as he spoke. Despite the close proximity of the two, Jack had to strain to even hear them. "I had thought you would have lied... it would have been easier."

"I know," Jack sighed. A long awkward silence soon fell upon the two. For once Jack was completely at a loss for words. He didn't know what to say and frankly he wasn't really sure if there was anything to say. "I'm sorry," Jack heard himself say.

"For what?" Will asked morosely as he pushed himself off of the pirate. His legs were still shaking a bit and he could just barely hold himself up right, but Jack was ready to catch him in case he fell again. "For telling me the truth? Don't be. I asked didn't I?"

"Not that. I meant Elizabeth."

Will sighed as he cradled his head in his hand, wincing visibly as he did so. "I don't know what to say," he groaned. "I can't say that I'm not happy you weren't... that you didn't..."

"Have sex with her?"

The younger man cringed visibly at Jack's bluntness. "Yes, that." A suddenly shudder passed through Will's body and Jack had to chuckle at just how much the mere thought of him and Elizabeth forming the beast with two backs affected Will. The boy was just as prudish as ever. "But I had five long years to think about our situation. I thought about what you did, what she did, and what I did and I realized that even if you hadn't had been with her-"

"I didn' sleep with her!" Jack interjected indignantly.

"I wouldn't have married her."

Jack was about to continue to remind Will that he hadn't slept with his former fiancée when the young man's words began to sink in. The pirate felt his jaw go slack and his head cock to the side in confuse. He wouldn't have married her? "Ye mean, ye spent the past five years hatin' me, blamin' me fer everything yet ye didn't even want ta marry the girl?" he said testily. This just wasn't fair! Where was this revelation when Jack had walked into the smithy? Where was this sudden logical conclusion when Will had stormed off of the Black Pearl five years ago? All these questions swirled around in Jack's head, but only one came bubbling out of his mouth; "Why?"

"Because _I_ slept with _you_," Will pointed out and Jack suddenly realized that he was back to square one. "Elizabeth and I were planning to save ourselves for each other, but I slept with you. I gave you my innocence. How could I marry her after that?"

"So this has been 'bout the two of us this whole time?"

Will gave out an exasperated sigh at the pirate's comment. "No Jack, it's about all three of us," Will explained. "That was just something that I realized.

"I've spent the last five years being angry. I was angry because I thought that you were my friend, that Elizabeth _loved_ me and when I saw the woman I was set to marry kissing the man that I had feelings for... I snapped. As far as I was concerned, I didn't want to see either of you ever again. You have no idea how grateful I was when Nathan came out looking like me.

"Now you're both back and I don't know what to think. It's so much easier to hate a memory than the real thing."

"So what are ye sayin'?" Jack asked hopefully. From the way Will was talking (rambling was more like it actually) it sounded as if the blacksmith didn't _completely_ detest him. Perhaps there was still a part of Will with feelings for him. Perhaps there was still a chance for him and Will to be together.

"Daddy! Papa Jack! Come look!" Nathan shouted as he suddenly burst through the smithy door. Both Jack and Will practically jumped ten feet into the air at their son's sudden presence. When Jack turned to see what Nathan was so excited about, he felt his stomach go cold. "I found a lady pirate!"

**Author's Note:** I that a lot of you have been sending me messages and commenting that you wanted me to update so just wanted to say that I _have_ been _trying_ to update for the past few days, but was giving me some problems. So, I'm sorry for taking so long, but it was (sort of) not my fault. :P


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Nineteen**

Jack's jaw would have dropped if he had not been half expecting to see the young woman show up sooner or later, but she just had to pick the worst possible time didn't she? Who would have guessed that Elizabeth Swann had such bad timing?

"I found a lady pirate!" Nathan announced proudly as he all but dragged the Governor's daughter through the door. Jack had to let a small smile slip across his face as he watched the little boy's eyes light up at the thought that he had found yet another pirate. The young woman on the other hand looked completely confused at the situation playing out before her. No doubt Elizabeth had just heard Nathan refer to him and Will as "Papa Jack" and "Daddy" respectively and was most likely trying to figure who in fact was the actual father of the boy.

"Well, I'm not _really_ a pirate," Elizabeth explained gently, her voice still shaking with confusion.

"But you're dressed like a pirate," Nathan pointed out. "You've got a sword and everything."

_She has a sword?_ Jack unconsciously felt his side, making sure that the blade that Will had given him this morning was in fact still there. The pirate let out a deep sigh when he assured himself that his sword was in fact still on his belt. So where the bloody hell had Elizabeth gotten a sword from?

It suddenly occurred to Jack that Will had yet to so much as react to Elizabeth's appearance. It was the second time today that she had appeared before him so unexpectedly and now she was with his son! How was he going to deal with this?

"Nathan, what do you think you're doing?" Will suddenly barked. Jack sent him a startled look, completely surprised by his tone towards their child. He had never heard Will speak to Nathan so harshly before.

A sheepish look suddenly crossed the boy's face as he slowly released his grip on Elizabeth's delicate wrist. "She was outside and she said-"

"What have I told you about talking to strangers?"

"But she said-"

"What if this woman really was a pirate and tried to kidnap you?"

The child's bottom lip began to tremble as he suddenly realized that he had done something very wrong. Jack felt his heart break in half at the sight before him. The very sight of tears forming in those deep brown eyes made him want to scoop the little boy into his arms and hold him until he smiled again, but Will didn't so much as flinch. Nathan had done something wrong and he had to make sure that the toddler understood that.

"I'm sorry Daddy," Nathan pouted, as he wiped the tears away from his eyes.

Will sighed, the pathetic look on his child's face had finally become too much for him to handle. "Come here Nathan," Will said gently, holding his arms wide open as a sign of forgiveness. Nathan walked sadly towards his father, head bowed, lower lip trembling, and tears running down his chubby cheeks. Once the little boy was standing in front of him, Will bent down to scoop the child into his arms and held him tightly. "I love you Nathan," he whispered as he rubbed the child's back soothingly, "that's why I make rules for you, not to be mean, but to protect you. I want you to be safe, that's why I tell you not to run off or talk to strangers. You're all I have Nathan."

"I'm sorry," Nathan sniffed once again as he rested his head on Will's shoulder.

"I know," Will said soothingly. "Now let's go get something in your tummy." With that Will left, _left_ the smithy, not even bothering to send a passing glance towards Elizabeth. Jack realized then that Will had just established two things; he had confirmed that he was in fact Nathan's father and he had made it very clear that he was not interested in speaking to Elizabeth Swann.

The confused look on Elizabeth's face soon began to mingle with a look of utter hurt. Clearly she hadn't been expecting Will to treat her so harshly. The younger man hadn't even so much as looked her in the eye and had stormed off with out so much as a passing glance. It was almost enough to make Jack feel sorry for her. _Almost_. He still couldn't get past the fact that there could be the faintest of chances that Will still harbored feelings towards Elizabeth Swann and getting her out of the picture would be the most profitable move for him. Perhaps coming face to face with Will's son would be enough to drive Elizabeth off?

"I told ye ta wait fer me back at the inn," Jack said evenly. He was more than a little annoyed that Elizabeth had followed him, but he should have expected as much from the head strong young woman. He was daft to think that she would just sit around and wait for him to bring her news about Will. Elizabeth wasn't like that; if she wanted something she'd go out and get it herself.

"Will... Will's a father?" she whispered brokenly. "How...? When...?"

Jack said nothing. He merely watched as the information fully sunk in. It was a bit cruel to stand there and watch the tormented young woman, but he wasn't quite ready to tell the girl that Will's son was _his_ as well.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Elizabeth asked pitifully.

"Darlin'," Jack soothed as he closed the distance between the two as he wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly against him. He watched with mild amusement as Elizabeth's nose wrinkled in distaste at his musky scent, but relaxed into his embrace anyway. "I didn' want ta burden ye with so much information when ye had been dealin' with yer own worries. How would ye have reacted if I had told ye that yer former fiancée, the first man ye'd ever loved, had moved on an' had a child o' his own?"

"Oh God," Elizabeth half sobbed as she grasped onto Jack's shirt and buried her face into his chest. "I can't believe it. He really has moved on."

"I know it's hard darlin'," he soothed as he held her at arms length. He wanted to comfort her not _bed her_ and he had to make sure that Elizabeth didn't get the wrong idea about him. "But it's been five years. We've all moved on."

"I understand that," she sniffed as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I guess a part of me hoped that things hadn't changed. I've been so lonely since Will left Port Royal! I miss him more and more every single day and I had hoped that a small part of him had missed me. I guess I was wrong... he doesn't even care."

"I know this is a lot fer ye ta take in all at once, so maybe I should give ye some time ta take it all in."

"No," Elizabeth said quickly. "I want to know more."

_Dammit._ Jack had been hoping that he could take the opportunity to slip out and try to find Will, but obviously Elizabeth wasn't going to be fooled again. "What d'ye want ta know?"

"What is she like?" Elizabeth asked. "His wife," she elaborated when it became clear that Jack didn't know who this "she" Elizabeth was referring to.

"Not married," he told her simply.

"Not married?" she repeated in confusion.

"'Fraid poor li'l Nathan doesn' have a mother," Jack told her solemnly. "Will had ta raise the poor lad all by himself."

"Oh my God!" she gasped, raising a hand to her chest in shock. "That's awful."

Jack suddenly wondered if he should have said that. Telling Elizabeth that Nathan had no mother might have been a bad mood. Elizabeth was clearly harboring some sort of feelings for Will (he couldn't call them love for sure, but they were there, clear as day) and if she really wanted to she could try to approach Will with the possibility of _becoming_ Nathan's new mother. Not that the boy needed a mother. Nathan had him and Will and as far as Jack was concerned that was all the four year old needed.

"It must have been so awful for him," Elizabeth muttered, thinking out loud more than actually talking. "Poor Will. I can't begin to imagine what he had to go through. Raising a child all by yourself... and now that he's fallen ill... It's just devastating!"

"Ill?" Jack blurted out, forgetting for a second that he had been the one to tell Elizabeth of Will's "illness".

"Whose ill?" Both Jack and Elizabeth jumped slightly in surprise as they turned to see that Will had reappeared in the doorway.

"I thought ye went home," Jack blurted out.

"Did you really think I'd just leave in the middle of the day without shutting down the shop?" he retorted.

"Will," Elizabeth started as she went to stand beside her former fiancée. The young woman looked ready to hug him, but stopped herself when she remembered that he was still a bit unhappy with her. "I heard about what happened," she said, resting a comforting hand on the young man's arm. "Jack told me about... about what's happened."

"Elizabeth," Will said, shaking his head in disappointment, "don't be daft. That is Jack Sparrow you were talking to. Whatever he told you was probably a fraction of the truth at best."

Elizabeth laughed weakly at the blacksmith's comment, very aware that Jack was still watching them. "I know," she said. "That's why I followed him. I wanted to see if he was going to see you so... so that I could find out the whole truth." A soft sob suddenly erupted from the young woman's throat. It was as if the fact that she was talking to Will Turner, her former fiancée and love of her life, had finally hit her. "Oh Will," she half sobbed. "I'm so sorry for what I did. If there were anyway that I could take it all back-"

"You can't take it back," Will snapped as he shrugged her hand off of his arm. "You hurt me, you both did. I thought you loved me, I thought _he_ was my _friend_, but I was wrong on both accounts."

Jack groaned at the younger man's words, not caring if the two former lovers heard him. He was tired of the same rant over and over, even if it was currently being direct at another person, and he would be more than happy to see the day when Will was ready to let go and move on with his life.

"But," Will began again as he gently cupped Elizabeth's hand in his own. His face softened greatly as he focused his chocolate brown eyes on her own, giving Jack the feeling that Will was about to say something that he wasn't going to like. "I realize now, that I..." Will frowned as he tightened his grasp on the young woman's hand. The words were obviously more difficult to say then he had original thought. "What we went through was a test. A test that we both failed. If we were truly meant for each other, if we were ever meant to be married, then we would have been able to resist temptation."

"Temptation?" she repeated, wrinkling her nose in confusion. "Will, what are you saying?"

"Jack," Will said plainly, "was something of a test for us."

"I still don't understand," Elizabeth said weakly. Jack couldn't quite tell if she honestly wasn't catching what Will was hinting at or simply not willing to believe it.

"I can't sit by and pretend to be the innocent victim anymore." Will glanced briefly over in Jack's direction as he spoke those words, but just as quickly turned his attention back to Elizabeth. "The truth of the matter is I did something terrible. In fact, what I did was probably worse than what you did."


	20. Chapter 20

  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty**

As Jack Sparrow looked upon Elizabeth Swann, he couldn't help but let amusement creep onto his features at the woman's current state. She currently sitting hunched over in a small wooden chair that Will had hurriedly told Jack to acquire after Elizabeth momentarily lost consciousness. She was awake now, sort of. She was frozen in a state of perpetual shock, her jaw opened ever so slightly as her once bright brown eyes were currently taking on a glassy appearance.

What Will had just finished telling her only a few scarce minutes ago had been madness, complete lunacy, but it had also been the truth. The blacksmith had spared absolutely no detail while recounting the tale of his and Jack's coupling which had resulted in conception of both Nathan and the unborn child currently occupying unknown space inside of Will's body. There had been moments in which Jack had grasped Will's shoulder as a way of suggesting that the younger man not be so blunt about with the telling of his story, but Will would have none of it. He felt (and rightly so) that Elizabeth needed to hear the whole truth and he'd be damned if she didn't.

Jack smirked ever so slightly at the lost look on the young woman's face. He couldn't help but rejoice in the fact that Elizabeth was no longer competition for him. Will had said himself that he and his former fiance were not meant to be together and to Jack that meant that cleared the way for the two of them.

"So tell me Will," Jack called from over his shoulder to the young blacksmith who was currently busying himself with shutting down the shop. Jack had convinced Will that there was no point in staying the whole day when there wasn't any chance of catching up on his work. Will had seen through the older man and knew that the pirate was only trying to get him to take it easier for the sake of their unborn child. "Where did ye run off to?"

"What do you mean?" Will asked instantly, from his tone of voice it was clear that he was only half listening, which didn't bother Jack since he only half cared himself.

"When ye left with Nathan, where did ye go? Ye came back awfully quick."

"Oh," Will said slowly as he suddenly began to focus on the conversation. "I just wanted to get Nathan out of here so I could... speak freely without worrying about him hearing anything he shouldn't, so I took him home. I ran into Mrs. Hobbs half way there and she offered to take him the rest of the way."

"I see," Jack said, but it was clear from his tone that he didn't really care. The smirk that had been on his lips was now spreading into an overly pleased smile and Jack was starting to worry that Will would be able to hear it in his tone.

When Jack heard Will approach him from behind, he did his best to wipe the grin off of his face, but found the task more difficult than he had anticipated. "You know Jack," Will began in a stern tone that suddenly made Jack feel as if Will were talking to Nathan, "I don't think it's very appropriate for you to be smiling at a time like this."

"Come now, luv," Jack smirked as he turned to Will and wrapped his arms around the blacksmith's waist. "Don't tell me ye don' find this situation a _li'l_ funny."

For a while Will said nothing, he merely stared at Jack pointedly as if waiting for something. Jack simply stared back at him not at all sure what the blacksmith was hinting at. That was, until he realized that he was currently embracing Will Turner.

"Don't act like this Jack," Will said slowly.

"Like what?" Jack asked as he slowly removed his hands from Will's hips, making sure to caress every inch of fabric that he could as he fingers made the slow decent downward.

"Like you've just won something," he said, and Jack was suddenly aware that Will knew he had feelings for him. "I'm not as simple as you think. I know what's going on."

"Then ye obviously know that I love ye," he said. At that point, he did not at all care whether or not Elizabeth managed to hear him through her haze of misery and confusion. All he cared about was that he said it, whether Will liked it or not he had finally said it and he wasn't going to take it back.

Will simply stared back at him not saying a word, possibly not knowing what to say. The look on his face told Jack that the young man had been expecting him to blurt out those words sooner or later, but had not thought of what to say in case of that event. "I know Jack," Will said solemnly, "and I'm sorry."

"Yer sorry?" he echoed. "What d'ye mean?"

"I mean that I'm sorry, because I don't know what to say," Will said honestly. The young man sighed as he turned to face Elizabeth. The poor lass was still pretty out of it and as unfortunate as her current state was Jack was too busy being focused on Will's words just now.

Reaching out an arm, Jack gently placed his hand on Will's shoulder and forced the other man to turn and face him. His expression was weary and his eyes were practically pleading for Jack to simply drop the subject and move on, but he couldn't. He couldn't just live without a clear cut answer. "Will," he began, frustration creeping into his tone in spite of his best efforts, "This ain't that difficult. All I need is a simple answer. Do ye love me?"

"No Jack, it's _not_ that simple," Will said, struggling to find the right words to express exactly what he was feeling. "I feel..." he began, flexing his fingers as if he were literally trying to mould the words in front of him so that they came out just right." I feel _something_ for you, but I wouldn't call it love."

"So ye _do_ feel somethin'," Jack said. He was satisfied not to hear the younger man say that he felt nothing for him, like he had tried to convince him earlier, but he didn't like how vague Will was being. "When did that happen?"

Will groaned as he placed his head in his hands, it was obvious that the makings of a headache were slowly creeping up on the younger man. "This has been such a long day," Will muttered. "I honestly don't know Jack," he said aloud. "Maybe... maybe my feelings for you never disappeared _completely_. Maybe it's because I realized that not everything is completely your fault. I can't say for sure. All I can say is that I have feelings for you."

_Better than nothin' I suppose,_ Jack thought as he grabbed Will by the shoulders and placed a deep kiss on his unsuspecting lips. Will stiffened in shock for a moment, but after Jack allowed his tongue and teeth to work their magic on the young man's deliciously soft lips, the blacksmith let out a loud moan as he relaxed into the kiss. Jack smiled, wrapping his arms around Will's lithe body, enjoying the fact that Will was actually starting to warm up to him. Perhaps he'd soon be able to bring up the topic of leaving port with him?

The kiss ended a bit too soon for Jack's liking, but since Will had been caught off guard it would only be fair to give him some time to breath. With a loud sigh, the young man all but collapsed against Jack as if his knees had completely forgotten how to support his weight. The two wobbled for a moment, but Jack managed to steady them enough to avoid any unnecessary trips to the floor.

"Sorry, luv," Jack sighed as he ran his hand through Will's loose curls, "I jus' couldn't resist."

"Well, I'd hate to disappoint you Jack," Will panted as he rested his head on Jack's shoulder, "but one little kiss isn't going to change my opinion."

"Little?" Jack said challengingly as he held the younger man at arms length, passion practically blazing in his eyes. "Well, if that kiss wasn't good enough for ye, whelp..."

He was about to lean in and capture Will's sweet lips in another searing kiss, but the young man deflected him by placing two strong hands on his chest. "I should go home," Will said softly, as if to remind Jack that they couldn't just stand around all day having kissing contests. "In the mean time, why don't you take care of _your_ guest?"

Now Jack truly was offended. He had just told the young man he loved him, kissed him until his legs gave out, and yet he was still acting as if he actually had any interest at all in Elizabeth Swann! "Will, ye know it-"

"I know that I have a four year old boy waiting for me at home," Will cut in as he untangled himself from Jack's embrace "and you have a would-be pirate to tend to."

With that, the younger man turned around to once again to face Elizabeth. This time he grabbed her by the shoulders and gently shook her awake. "Come on now Elizabeth," Will said patiently, his tone similar to the one he used when speaking to Nathan. "Jack is going to take you back to your room." Carefully, he lifted the girl up on her wobbly legs holding her so that she wouldn't completely fall over. Her eyes slowly began to focus, the glassy haze clearing away, as Will lead her over to Jack who was staring at the girl as if she had just escaped from a mad house.

"What d'ye want me ta do with her?" Jack ask distastefully taking Elizabeth's wobbly frame into his hands, holding her at arms length as if she had some foul smell that only Jack knew of.

Will shrugged causally at the pirate's comment. "She's your charge, not mine," Will reminded him as he stepped aside enough to give Jack passage to the front door.

The pirate sent the younger man an ill favoured look as he lead the young girl back to the inn where they were currently staying.


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-One**

"You and Will?" Elizabeth murmured into her mug. "I never would have imagined."

Jack nodded thoughtfully, knowing good and well that Elizabeth wasn't actually addressing him, as he took a swig of his rum. Will had just dropped quite a lot on Elizabeth without giving much consideration as to how the young woman felt, and Jack felt a bit sorry for her. He had been at the brunt of Will's anger before and even if it seemed to him that the blacksmith was going a bit easier on Elizabeth than he had on Jack, the pirate felt almost obligated to help the young woman straighten things out in her head. At least this one time anyway.

"Ta be fair lass," Jack added, "we were never actually _together_. We jus' had few moments is all."

"You two have something that Will and _I_ were supposed to have," Elizabeth said sadly. "You have a family. Nathan... could have been mine."

Jack frowned at the young woman's comment. He had caught the hitch in her voice at the word "could" and automatically knew that what she really wanted to say was "_should_." He couldn't be mad at her though. The truth of the matter was that that was how things _should_ have been. Elizabeth _should_ have married Will, she _should_ be the one birthing their children, and Jack _should_ have been the one who was jealous of them. It was really all Jack's fault (indirectly) that things hadn't worked out that way. Will had told him flat out that he couldn't marry Elizabeth _because_ he had slept with Jack. Take away that one little event and everything might have worked out fine.

"Doubtful that he'd turn out the same," Jack mused conversationally. "Two o' ye would have raised him different so he wouldn' o' had the same personality."

"We could have had beautiful children," Elizabeth said, her words were soft and sad as her brown eyes gave a far away look. "I'd birth as many as he wanted and I would have loved them all! Little boys, little girls, whatever he wanted I would have given him! I'd have been a good mother, the best mother there could be."

She was drunk. Jack knew it, but it didn't surprise him. The woman had three empty mugs in front of her and she was just about to polish off a fourth. It had been his intention all along to get her drunk, it was what Jack had thought would be the most helpful solution to her problem. He figured if he could get her to drown her sorrows and pour out her anguish to him then she'd feel a bit better about the situation in the morning. It was what had always worked for him.

Actually, now that he thought about it... No. It was best not to think about it. He was already too far into his plan to bother to turn back now.

"Never knew ye were the maternal type 'Lizabeth," Jack said as he signalled for a serving wench to come over and refill their drinks. A skinny black haired woman came over to gather their empty mugs and replace them with freshly filled ones. The woman turned and stared at Elizabeth questioningly before silently moving on to another table. Clearly they didn't get many woman in this pub, but Jack shrugged it off. He was still sober enough to focus on what he was doing, so he knew it would be quite awhile before they left. The wench might have to get used to Elizabeth's presence after tonight. "Tell me lass, d'ye still want children?"

Elizabeth sniffed as she casually tossed her hair over her shoulder. The move would have been graceful had she been sober, but in her current state it seemed awkward and slightly worrisome, as if she were about to tip over, but caught herself just on time. "I don't really know anymore," she told him honestly. "When it was with Will... Yes. I knew we'd be happy an' I knew I could do it, because that was what I wanted. I want to have _his_ babies! Because they would have been _him_. Everywhere I went I would have a little bit of Will all around me, even a little of Will inside of me.

"But now the idea is not so appealin'," she said, before stopping to take another pull at her rum, completely finishing her fourth mug. She placed it down with what had been intended to be a thump, but turned into a wobble as the mug tipped over onto it's side. "Will isn't an option anymore. Having his babies isn't an option anymore. It's frightening to think about. Even when he was gone I had hope... I hoped that one day we'd see each other again. I would go out to sea, become a pirate an' I'd find Will waiting for me, happy and still in love... now I'm miserable an' alone."

Jack nodded again, adding in a thoughtful "hm" just for good measure. At this point he was only really half listening as he silently argued with himself whether or not to call it a night. One glance out towards the sole window in the pub told Jack that it was already pitch black outside. He had originally intended to let Elizabeth get at least six mugs of rum in her, but her body was small and child like, six mugs might be pushing things for her. What's more he wanted to get up early tomorrow so that he could spend time with Nathan and try to win Will over. If Elizabeth got too drunk she'll be sick in the morning and in need of Jack's care.

_On second thought, maybe I should cut meself off fer the night as well.b_

"I wish he had told me," he heard Elizabeth saying. "I wish he could have at least explained why he wouldn't marry me, but he didn't say a word! How hard would it have been for him to tell me? 'Sorry Elizabeth, I can't marry you because I'm having Jack's baby.' See, it wasn't that hard!"

"He didn' know he was pregnant when he left ye," Jack pointed out gently as he reached over to grab one of the still full mugs across from Elizabeth.

"He still should have told me," Elizabeth half sobbed as tears suddenly appeared in the corners of her foggy eyes. "I didn' know why he left an' I felt horrible! It would have been decent of him to just tell me instead of making me suffer!"

Jack said nothing. He merely eyed the other mug of rum within grabbing distance from the young woman. He'd let her have one more and then it'd be off to bed.

"What was he like Jack?" Elizabeth sniffed as she brushed her hair out of her face, once again giving off the impression of tipping over.

"What?" Jack asked, caught off guard by the question.

"You slept with him obviously. What was it like?"

If Jack had been the type of man who blushed at indecent comments, his face would have been bright red. Luckily for him, he wasn't that type of man, so he just raised a questioning eyebrow at the young woman across from him. "It ain't the same lass," Jack explained gently. "When two mates have sex it ain't the same as a lad an' a lass."

"You can still give me a general idea," Elizabeth said as she leaned forward, resting her chin in her hand. "Was he good? Did he move around a lot or was he stiff?"

The pirate smirked. If Will were here he would kill him for this, but he figured that Elizabeth wouldn't remember anything he said and even if she did she'd be smart enough to keep it to herself. "We spent two nights together," Jack recounted. "The night we conceived Nathan an' the night we conceived the baby Will's carryin' now, that was 'bout a month ago. When we conceived Nathan we made love three times. It was his first time, an' he didn' want ta do it so he was very shy an' _very_ stiff. When we made love a month ago he was angry with me so he was very... aggressive. He moans a lot an' has a tendency ta bite... now at least, but yes darlin' he was very good."

For a while, Elizabeth just nodded, taking in all the information as if Jack had been telling her how his day had gone, but once he had stopped talking her eyes began to water and her bottom lip started to tremble. Before he knew it the slim young woman was sobbing silently to herself and Jack felt like a complete fool. He should have never told her that! It was stupid to think that she would be able to handle that sort of information. After all, he wouldn't want to hear about how good Will was in the sack from _Elizabeth_.

With a sigh, Jack stood up from his seat across from Elizabeth and walked to the other side of the table. "Alright lass," Jack said as helped the young woman get to her feet. "That's enough rum fer ye. Let's get ye ta bed."

Elizabeth reluctantly did as she was told, but as they walked towards the door she rested most of her weight against his own thin frame and continued to sob. "It could have been me!" she howled. "It could've! It should've!"


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

Time was beginning to slip away from Jack. Before he knew it, another two months had passed and the Black Pearl would be arriving to pick him up in only a matter of days. His progress with Will had been slow as advised by Elizabeth. After a few weeks of hysteria and unwillingness to believe that her chances with Will were over, the young woman eventually came to terms with what was going on when she realized that Jack was actually sincere in his efforts to make Will happy. She had told Jack to take things slow with Will seeing that the younger man was used to being the one doing the courting and not the other way around, but after a month of nothing but warm smiles Jack had decided to speed things up.

He began lavishing Will with all sorts of presents all in preparation for the next few months of Will's pregnancy and his eventual stay on the Pearl. He'd bought him shirts, pants, jackets, and even a new pair of boots since Will had gone back to wearing those god awful buckled shoes. (Although he did like the way Will's shapely calves were perfectly outlined in those white stockings. If anyone could pull them off it was Will Turner.) Will, however, had not been the best of sports about receiving so many gifts. He had only opened half of them and refused to use any. The blacksmith's room was currently filled with packages ranging from plain to extravagant in appearance. Finally, Will had had enough and decided to put an end to the gift exchange once and for all.

"No more," Will said firmly.

Jack frowned as Will unceremoniously dropped the small box onto Jack's lap. The two were currently in Will's bedroom sitting across from each other on the smith's bed. Jack figured that since giving the younger man gifts was a good way to get him to stay in one spot for more than a second he might as well do it somewhere that Will could be comfortable. "What d'ye mean 'no more'?" Jack asked as he turned over the box in his hands.

"I mean no more gifts! I'm tired of you treating me like some sort of... of woman," Will told him stubbornly.

"Careful ye don' say that 'round Elizabeth," Jack chided. For the first time in days Elizabeth wasn't around them and Jack was relieved beyond words! The young woman kept trying to get closer to Will. Obviously she was hoping that by spending more time with him, the smith would start to forgive her quicker and unfortunately for her it wasn't working. Most of the time Will would either make an excuse to leave the room or just ignore her which made it hard for _Jack_ to spend time with Will since Elizabeth didn't like being alone. Jack, however, had managed to get around her by getting the girl so piss drunk the previous night that she was still hung over even though it was closing in on supper time.

"I don't care," Will groaned. "I don't want it and I don't want you giving me any more gifts. Take it back."

"But ye didn' even see what's inside," Jack encouraged as he slid the small package back into Will's lap.

"Well, I still don't want it," Will sighed in annoyance.

"But sweetness," Jack crooned as he slid closer towards the smith.

"I told you _not_ to call me that!" Will snapped.

"Fine treasure," he purred, noticing with great amusement that Will rolled his eyes at his latest term of endearment.

"I think it might be best if you saved your money for more important things," Will sighed.

"Like what treasure?"

Before Will could answer, there was a loud banging noise from the other side of the door. Since little Nathan had walked in on Jack and Will the two had taught the toddler the importance of knocking before entering a room. Unfortunately, Nathan's way of knocking included the four year old slapping his palms against the door. The sound was extremely loud and usually caused Jack and Will jumped in surprise.

"I'll never get used ta that," Jack groaned as Will went to open the door and allow Nathan inside.

As soon as the door was opened wide enough, Nathan hurried into the room and ran over towards Jack. "Papa Jack! Papa Jack!" the boy said breathlessly as he bounced up and down in front of the pirate. "Guess what? Guess what?"

Jack laughed as he lifted the boy onto his lap. "What is it lad?"

"My birthday is coming up!" Nathan told him happily.

"It is?" Jack gasped in exaggerated excitement. Truth be told, Jack was slightly ashamed of himself. He actually had no idea that Nathan's birthday was coming up soon and he felt embarrassed for not knowing when his own son had been born. "Well isn' that som'in? We should have a party, shouldn' we Will?"

Will smiled as he shut the door behind him. "If that's what Nathan wants."

"That's okay, I don't really want a party," Nathan said. "But I do know what I want for my birthday!"

"Well, what do you want for your birthday, darling?" Will asked as he sat down beside the pirate.

"Well," Nathan began as he played with the tip of his wooden sword. "I was wonderin' if you could have the baby now so I can have a little brother for my birthday."

Jack laughed warmly at the toddler's request. Even Will had to chuckle at Nathan's naive words. "I'm sorry lad," Jack began gently, "but that can't happen."

"Why not?" Nathan pouted. "I want to be a big brother for my birthday!"

"Nathan," Will began gently as he slipped into his usual, warm parental tone. Jack felt a familiar tremor run through his body as Will spoke. Dear Lord how he adored it when Will used his parental voice! "I can't just give you a younger brother or sister! It takes nine months for a baby to be born and I've only been pregnant for _three_."

"But I want to be a big brother _now_!" Nathan whined as a disappointed pout creased his face.

"Sorry, lad," Jack laughed. "We can't be gettin' that baby out any faster than nature intended, but I'll tell ye what son; I'm gonna get ye lots an' lots o' presents fer yer birthday an' give ye the biggest cake ye've ever laid eyes on!"

"Cake?" Nathan asked all traces of disappointment vanished at the promise of cake. "I get a cake for my birthday?"

"Course ye can lad!" Jack said as he wrapped his arms tightly around the little boy and pulled him into a warm hug. "It's yer birthday! Ye can have whatever ye want!"

"I've never had cake before!" Nathan blurted out happily as he wrapped his arms around the pirate's neck. "Thank you Papa Jack! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"Yer welcome lad," he laughed. Nothing made Jack feel better than knowing that Nathan was happy and now the boy was practically bubbling with pure joy. "Yer me son an' I'm here ta give ye whatever ye want!"

"I'm so happy!" Nathan giggled. "I'm going to tell Eustace!" With that the toddler hopped off of Jack's lap and scrambled out the door.

Will smiled as he got up to close the door behind the excited toddler. "Do you want to return some of the things you bought for me Jack?" Will asked as he turned around, revealing a satisfied smirk clear on his face.

Jack shrugged. "Suppose I have ta," he admitted. Despite his recent overly generous purchases, Jack was not a rich man. He may receive the captain's share of any loot his crew came across, but the money comes and goes very easily. One day you'd be well off and then the next, after a night of drinking and pleasurable company, you'd be back to where you started. Such was the life of a pirate.

The smirk on Will's handsome young face grew as he casually walked over towards the bed and picked up the small box that had laid forgotten until now. "Well then," the young man began, waving the box in his hand, "I suppose you can start with this one." With that, Will let the tiny package fall right into Jack's waiting hands.

The pirate caught the box mid fall and smiled back at the young man. "Oh no, treasure," he purred. "_This one_ ye're gonna keep."

Will let out an exasperated sigh at the pirate's stubbornness. Rolling his eyes in annoyance, he practically collapsed onto the bed causing Jack to instantly scoot closer towards him. The pirate took this opportunity to wrap one arm around the blacksmith's shoulder and place a gentle hand on his thigh. Dear Lord was the boy's thigh warm! Warm, muscular and so... inviting. These three months had been the longest of Jack's life. He still hadn't received so much as a peck on the cheek from dear William and Jack just couldn't understand it! How could someone so beautiful be so ridged? How could this lovely creature be so against sex?

"Jack," Will began wearily as he removed the pirate's hand from its current place on his thigh, "what is it going to take to make you realize that I don't like being treated this way? I have no interest in being doted upon! I understand that you have these... feelings for me-"

"I love ye," Jack said bluntly. "I'm not one ta throw that word 'round whelp, yet ye can't even decided whether or not ye fancy me! It's drivin' me bloody crazy! What is it goin' ta take fer _ye_ ta warm up ta me?"

"A lot," Will said. "We have history Jack, history that is very hard to ignore. You hurt me very badly-"

"Five soddin' years ago whelp!" Jack practically whined. "When are ye goin' ta learn ta let this go?"

"Says the man who spent ten years of his life hunting down his mutinous former first mate," Will scoffed.

_Bloody hell,_ Jack groaned mentally. "Alright whelp," he sighed. "Ye got me there." A soft shuffling sound caused Jack's eyes to wander downward. He saw then, lying on the floor near his feet was the package that he and Will had been passing back and forth. Apparently it had fallen to the ground during their little exchange. Without a second's hesitation, he bent down to pick it up and shoved it in his coat pocket. He wasn't giving up; he was just going to wait for a more opportune moment to spring the package on Will again. "Let's jus' cut to the chase darlin'," he began smoothly as he lifted one of Will's work hardened hands and cupped them between his own. "Ye have somethin' I want an' I won't stop comin' after ye until I get it."

Will frowned at the statement, his brow furrowing in confusion as he cocked his head curiously at Jack. "Something you want?"

"Yer heart," Jack murmured as he lifted the startled young man's hand towards his lips and placed a gentle kiss onto his palm. Lowering the hand, Jack began to trace loving circles onto Will's palm with his fingers as his other hand held the boy so that he wouldn't snatch his arm away. "Already given ye mine, so I only think its fair I get yers in return. So tell me, what does ole Jack have ta do for ye ta let me get closer to ye?"

Silence fell upon the two as the smith slowly digested Jack's words. Will slowly turned his head away to face a blank spot on the floor as if he were suddenly unable to look at Jack. The pirate could practically see the conflict warring inside of the poor young man. His rich chocolate brown eyes had practically glazed over as he considered Jack's words. He watched as Will's free hand slowly moved to rest upon the young smith's surprisingly flat stomach as if he needed to draw strength from it. Jack watched as the younger man weakly began to speak, his mouth flapping but no words coming out. Slowly, Jack lifted the boy's hand to his lips and began to kiss the tip of each individual finger. Will shuddered at the sensation, but his eyes stayed focused on the floor.

"I suppose my biggest fear," Will began as Jack lowered the young man's hand away from his lips, "is that we won't work. I feel as if we have so much depending on our relationship to work, but... we have _nothing_ in common! My God, we're not even the same age! You're old enough to be Nathan's _grandfather_!"

The pirate flinched at the mention of his age. He was already feeling old enough as it was _before_ Will had told him he had a child, and now that he had to compare Jack to his father... Dear Lord, Jack could be his father!

_No no! Don' think like that Sparrow! Ye love him, that's all that matters._

"I know this situation is strange," Jack soothed, "but ye have ta at least give me a chance."

"Yes," Will said softly, slowly nodding his head at the older man's words. "You do deserve a chance Jack... but I know your reputation. You're not the most dependable man around and hardly the type of man I'd like to see helping to raise my children. You're a thieving, lying, lecherous, drunkard pirate. You've had countless... conquests and quite frankly I do not want to be one of them."

"Will," Jack broke in, dropping the smith's hand and instead cupping the boy's face and forcing his eyes to meet his. "Jus' tell me what ta do. I'll do anythin'."

There was a moment of hesitation as Will's eyes gazed into Jack's as if asking for permission to continue. The pirate gave the faintest of nods before the boy finally continued. "If we are to be together," he said slowly, "then I must be the only one in your life. I will not accept you sleeping with anyone else, man or woman."

"Consider it done," Jack smiled as he leaned into kiss Will, only to be stopped by a hand on his chest.

"There's more," Will said quietly. "I want you to give up rum." Jack's hands went slack at that comment. He actually felt his jaw drop open and his kohl-rimmed eyes widen to the size of dinner plates. "I do not want my children being around a drunk. If you want to be around them, you must be sober."

"Bugger," he muttered. He loved Will so staying faithful would be easy, but did he love him enough to actually give up rum forever?

"It's a lot to swallow," Will said his voice was small yet understanding as he spoke. This time Will was the one to hold Jack's hand, cradling it between his own as if the pirate had been turned into a frightened child. "You don't have to give me a straight answer right away. I'll give you some time to think it over."

Time? Time was the one thing he didn't have. The Pearl would be coming back soon and his answer would no doubt effect whether or not Will would join him on the ship. He couldn't change over night, but there was no way he'd be able to give up on Will.

Shyly, the younger man slowly leaned over and placed a tender kiss on Jack's cheek. A soft moan escaped the pirate's lips. It had been so long since he had felt Will's lips against his flesh and they were... wonderful. But as Will himself had said, one small kiss wasn't going to make up his mind.


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

Time had passed by much faster than Jack would have liked and before he knew it, it was Nathan's fifth birthday. Jack had sold back most of the things he had purchased for Will (forcing the younger man to keep a jacket, a few shirts, a couple pairs of pants, and a pair of boots that Jack had thought complemented the younger man's calves quite nicely) in order to buy some toys for Nathan. Will wasn't exactly happy with all the toys that Jack had purchased for their son, but the pirate had talked Will into keeping them. After all, if they could afford to spoil the lad then why not? He was a good child after all.

Nathan, however, seemed to take after Will in his frugalness. The lad had stated several times not to throw him a party so Jack had agreed not to, but that didn't stop the others from giving him gifts. Mr. and Mrs. Hobbs had bought the child a wooden rocking horse, Sarah had knitted him a pair of socks (which Nathan did not enjoy), and little Eustace had made his friend a pirate flag. Will had not been happy about that, but allowed the child to give the gift since it would have hurt Eustace's feelings.

Jack of course had delivered on his promise of one cake. The look on little Nathan's face when he had seen the treat was nothing short of priceless. His dark brown eyes had widened to nearly twice their normal size at the sight of the richly decorated multi-layered cake. The child had been so excited that he had snuck a second slice while Will wasn't looking. This had caused the boy to be off the wall with the sudden rush of sugar, but Jack had managed to calm him down enough to open the rest of his presents. It hadn't surprised Jack at all when they opened Will's gift and discovered that the younger man, just as sensible as ever, had given the child clothes. Jack had saved his best gift for last, a perfect replica of the Black Pearl. The pirate had purchased the toy boat and painted the sails black in order to make it look more like his ship.

"Oh wow! Papa Jack, it's your ship!" Nathan gasped as he held the toy in his hand.

"That it is lad," Jack laughed, patting the boy's head affectionately. "How d'ye like it?"

"I love it!" Nathan beamed, bouncing up and down with a mixture of pure joy and too much sweets. Without warning, the hyper young boy latched onto his father's neck in pure excitement. "Now I get a pirate ship too! Thank you Papa Jack! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"Ye're welcome lad," Jack said as he returned the child's embrace. Nothing made him happier than bringing a smile to Nathan's sweet face. It was moments like these that Jack was glad the child took after Will. It was nice to know there was a version of Will Turner that he could easily make laugh and smile.

_Where the blazes is Will anyway?_ It suddenly struck him that Will was no where to be found. "Nathan luv, have ye seen yer Da'?"

"Uhhh... I think he left to get some air, that's what he said."

Jack frowned at the toddler's comment. Something wasn't right. He could feel it in his gut. "Nathan, why don't ye stay here an' play with yer presents while I go talk ta yer Da'."

"Okay," Nathan said happily as he bounced off to play with his new toys.

Jack smiled warmly at his son before going off to look for Will. He found the younger man sitting outside on the steps to the Hobbs home, face buried in the palms of his hands, and his shoulders shaking slightly. The sight caused Jack to stop in his tracks. _Bloody hell, he's actually cryin'!_

The pirate frowned at the sight. He couldn't understand why Will could be crying. The day had been going so well; Nathan was happy, there had been many presents exchanged, and Elizabeth wasn't even here! A part of Jack knew that the best thing to do would be to turn around and leave Will alone to his thoughts, but that's not something he wanted to do. "Somethin' wrong lad?" Jack asked softly, not wanting to startle the younger man too much.

Will jumped slightly in surprise at the sound of the older man's voice, but didn't bother to turn around. Instead, he merely wiped at the tears that had moments ago been running down his lightly tanned cheeks and did his best to recompose himself. "No," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "I'm just fine."

"Then why were ye cryin'?" Jack asked casually as he sat down beside the young smith.

"I'm allowed to cry aren't I?" Will snapped.

Jack shrugged, not at all phased by the blacksmith's comment. "Course ye are, sweetness, but I didn' expect ta see ye gettin' all misty eyed on me."

"Jack," Will began testily, still not at all liking the pet name 'sweetness.'

"Seriously now, treasure," Jack soothed as he wrapped a supportive arm around Will's shoulders, "I thought things were goin' quite well today an' seein' ye like this... well, I'd hate ta think that somethin' I said or did in there upset ye enough ta make ye come out here an' start bawlin'!"

Will laughed lightly as the tears began to leak from his eyes once more. "It wasn't you Jack," he assured before wiping the moisture away from his eyes.

"Well what was it, luv?" he pushed as he gave the young man's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Tell ol' Jack what's bothering' ye."

"I'm pregnant remember?" Will joked, but there was a sadness in his tone that Jack couldn't help, but pick up on. "I can go from content to angry in less than a breath. This sort of thing happens to me quite a bit. I just think it's better if I go out and give myself a good cry so that I can keep from bursting into tears in front of everyone."

"Does it work?"

"Have you seen me crying lately?"

"Well, yes actually, but ye weren't pregnant jus' yet. Then again there was that other time jus' _before_ ye told me ye were pregnant, although ye weren't completely bawlin' now were ye?"

The faintest of smile suddenly crossed Will's face as he shyly leaned over to place the gentlest of kisses on Jack's lips. It was dark and in the quite port town there wasn't much activity during this time of night, so there was no real fear of being spotted by any passers by, but Jack was still a bit surprised that Will was bold enough to give him a peck on the lips out in public. "Ye really aren't yeself tonight are ye luv?"

Will sighed as he rested his head on Jack's welcoming shoulder. The pirate smiled as he bent over to rest his cheek on top of Will's loose curls. Jack could practically hear the tears slowly leaking from Will's beautiful chocolate brown orbs as the younger man simply sat there, neither hiding them or showing them off as if he weren't completely sure how open he should be with Jack at the moment. "I guess I do feel a little sad," Will whispered, his voice suddenly very horse and unsure of itself. "I always get a bit emotional on Nathan's birthday. He's... always been my baby, but now..." A sudden quivering breath erupted out of Will's mouth. The pregnant young man had to turn and burry his face into Jack's chest to keep his sobs from getting any louder.

Jack was silent as he wrapped his arms around the emotional young man's trembling body. He had never seen Will break down like this. Will who was so strong, Will who was so brave, Will who had raised a baby all alone. "Tell me 'bout the day he was born," he said more than asked since he knew that Will was seconds away from telling him the heart wrenching story anyway.

"It was awful," Will sobbed. "It was a terrible storm and... my water broke. I was homeless at the time, but had taken shelter at an inn near the harbor. There wasn't a doctor around so I had no other choice but to venture out into the storm. The trudge to the doctor's office is nothing but a blur now, I must have gotten there on pure fear alone, and when I arrived... he wouldn't let me in. He tried to turn me away, refused to open the door... then I started to bleed."

A lump was suddenly forming in the older man's throat at Will's story. Will wasn't one to exaggerate a tale for the sake of keeping the audience interested so he knew there was nothing but truth in his words. The pirate felt as if he couldn't stomach hearing the rest, but listened to the tale purely for the sake of knowing more about both Will and Nathan.

"The next few hours were nothing but pure and utter pain," Will continued, his voice was slightly steadier, but he still gripped onto Jack's jacket as if it were the last thing keeping him from falling to pieces. "I spent them screaming until my throat was sore and shaking so badly that I thought my limbs would fall off. It was then that I realized how alone I was, and if I died right then there wouldn't be anyone who really cared.

"You should have seen the way the doctor looked at me. I never felt so foul and disgusting in my life!"

White hot anger suddenly flashed in Jack's eyes. That rotten bastard! How dare he think lowly of Will when he was already in the worst pain of his life! How dare he judge this wonderful, noble creature wicked for something that wasn't his own fault! If it weren't for the fact that he was holding the most beautiful man in the world in his arms, Jack would have gone to hunt that bastard down and rip his eyes out.

"But then it happened," Will whispered, his voice hushed in a way that was neither sad nor happy, just peaceful. "Out came the most wonderful creature in the world. The doctor laid him in my arms and I was so tired that I could barely see, but when I looked into his dark brown eyes, I knew... I knew that I wasn't alone anymore."

Jack smiled, his whole body felt as if it had gone from frozen solid to warm and toasty as he tightened his grasp around the smith. _Ye were never alone ye stubborn fool! Ye had friends! Ye had me! Bloody hell, Will if only ye'd come ta me none o' this would have happened!_

A tired sigh escaped Will's lips as one hand weakly travelled upward to grasp Jack's chin beads and gently roll them between his thumb and forefinger. "Have you considered my request Jack?"

The pirate felt his stomach tighten at the younger man's words. Of course he had considered the younger man's request. It had been all he could think about for the past few days. Jack knew full and well that his entire relationship with Will rested on his ability to stay faithful and give up his rum. The first request was simple enough, Will was all he really needed so staying faithful wouldn't be a problem at all, but staying sober...

"I have," he said slowly.

"And?"

Jack swallowed, still not completely sure about his answer. Will really was asking a lot of Jack. Rum wasn't just some drink to him, it was part of who he was. After all, a pirate without rum really wasn't much of a pirate, but Jack doubted that the younger man understood that nor did he expect to convince him to change his opinion on the matter.

"I can give you more time if that's what you need," Will suggested thoughtfully. Jack could hear the faintest trace of disappointment in the smith's voice. Obviously Will had been hoping that he would have had an answer by now, and truth be told, so was Jack. After all, even though Will was offering him more time, his was already up.

"'Bout that," Jack began casually as he rummaged through his coat pocket for something that he had slipped inside the night before. "There's somethin'... rather important that I need ta tell ye."


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

"So that's it then," Will said irritably. "You're leaving me."

"That's _not_ what I said," Jack sighed in exasperation. He should have known that Will would react badly to his news, but he wasn't sure just how bad it would be. After all, a few weeks ago Will Turner would have been so pleased to be rid of him that the lad would most likely be dancing in the streets with pure joy. Now Will was acting as if Jack had just broken their engagement.

"Well that sure is what it bloody sounded like!" the pregnant young man snapped. It was hard to imagine that just a few minutes ago this fiery young man had been in Jack's arms on the verge of tears.

"Will," Jack started, but was instantly cut off.

"So how does this work Jack?" Will snapped hotly. "I ask you to quit drinking and you walk off? Did things suddenly get too serious? Was the idea of giving up your precious rum just too much for you so you decided to just jump ship instead? Was the idea of buggering just one man _that_ hard to deal with?"

"Now don't go an' act as if ye didn' know this day was comin'," Jack said pointedly. "Ye knew from the start that I was goin' ta be sailin' off sooner or later. I'm a pirate remember?"

"I also remember that it was a certain someone who had been asking me to give him a chance to be in our son's life. Now, when I _finally_ give in, you just up and decide you don't want to play this game anymore!" With a frustrated sigh, Will threw his arms into the air as he got to his feet and started pacing back and forth. "This is so typical! I should have seen this coming from a mile away! You only wanted me to admit that I had feelings for you so that you could get me into the sack again."

"It's _not_ like that!" Jack all but hissed as he quickly got to his feet. He knew how his fights with Will always ended up getting violent, but he wasn't going to let that happen this time. This time, there would be no shoving or blacking out. They were just going to talk.

"Then what is it like, Jack?" Will asked crossly. "Because I'd like to know how you can obsess over me and Nathan and then turn around and sail off as if we don't matter."

"Because it's me _job_," he stressed, fist clenched, eyes narrowed and jaw set. "I've put me whole life on hold jus' so I can work at gettin' the chance ta know me son an' rekindle me relationship with someone I love." _I shouldn' have ta work so bloody hard ta win ye over, but I did._ Jack had considered saying that last part out loud, but knew that he'd only get a long winded rant about how pirates made for poor parents and frankly he did not have the time to sit there and listen. "I think months o' waiting patiently for ye ta warm up ta me should grant me a few moments ta plead me case."

By some unforseen miracle, Will was actually silenced by his words. Instead of huffing and puffing and continuing to argue against the pirate's comment, Will merely stood there with his arms crossed over his flat chest and his lips drawn into a tight, thin line.

The pirate sighed as he reached into his pocket for the small box that he had tucked away into his coat during Will's tirade. "Here," he said as he pointed the package at Will. "Ye might want ta open this before I continue."

Will stared at the older man suspiciously for a moment before hesitantly taking the package in his hand. Even in the dim moonlight it was easy to tell that the package in Will's hands was the very same one he had refused only days ago. Yet this time the young man did not complain or try to give it back. Instead, he reluctantly opened it. The pirate watched Will's nose wrinkled in a mix of distaste and confusion as he pulled out the object inside. He held it between his fingers questioningly, turning the metal item over in his hands. "What is this Jack?" Will asked as he held the item up to the pirate.

"This, dear William," Jack said as he took it away from Will and held it aloft in the air, "is a key."

"I knew that much," Will said flatly as Jack placed the key flat on his palm. The shape of the object made that very obvious, yet there was nothing extravagant or mysterious about it. Obviously Will had assumed that Jack had been trying to give him something a bit more lavish than a mere key. "What is it a key to?"

"What do keys do, William?" Jack asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes in spite of the situation.

"Jack," he began, a warning clear in his tone, "it's been a very long day and I would rather not have you playing your little word games with me. Now, if you would be so kind, I'd like you to give me an answer that is both clear and straight to the point, and if you tell me that this is the 'key to your heart' I'm going to throw it back at your head!"

Jack pouted in mock disappointment. "Lord whelp, yer no fun at all!" he said and was rewarded with Will rolling his eyes in irritation. "No William, it ain't the key ta me heart. There'd be no point in me givin' ye that key seein' how ye've already stolen me little black heart a long time ago." Jack paused for a moment to allow himself to enjoy the sight of Will once again rolling his eyes in a mixture of annoyance and the faintest bit of amusement. "This is, however, a very special key. Ye see Will, it's the key ta me cabin."

"Your cabin?" Will repeated sceptically as he raised a questioning eyebrow. The pirate watched as Will's confused mask quickly melted away and was replaced by a look of understanding. "You want me to come with you," he said slowly.

"I know it seems sudden," the pirate began, "but ye an' I both knew this was comin' an'... I jus' can't leave ye alone like this Will. I can't leave ye ta raise Nathan an' our baby all by yer onesy. Ye need me, whether ye like it or not."

"What about the rum?"

"Gone," Jack said, forcing the words out of his mouth before he had time to reconsider his decision. "_But_ I want ta be able ta drink whenever ye or the children ain't around."

Will frowned slightly, considering this new term in their deal. "Sounds fair enough," Will agreed. "What about Elizabeth?"

Jack frowned, wrinkling his nose in confusion. "What _'bout_ her?"

"Is she... will she be joining your crew after all?"

_Bullocks._ He'd forgotten about Elizabeth. Will was barely able to be in the same room as her and being stuck on a ship with the girl for the next few months wouldn't exactly be something the younger man would want to do. "Aye luv," he sighed. "I did promise her a place on me ship, but I'd be willin' ta leave her if ye want me ta-"

"No... don't... I..." Will stood in complete silence, staring at the key intensely as if willing the object to tell him something. "I... I honestly don't know what to say," Will whispered as he looked over at Jack, confusion clear in his chocolate brown eyes. "This is a big decision. Is there any way that I could have some time to think about this?"

_NO!_ Jack felt like screaming the word at the top of his lungs. What part of "I have to leave port tomorrow" did the young man not understand? The pirate sighed as he placed a firm hand on the blacksmith's shoulder. "Will, darlin'," he began.

"Daddy!" Nathan cried as he came running towards the two men, cutting Jack off before he could finish his thought. Within moments the boy had attached himself to Will's leg, causing the smith to temporarily forget the conversation he had just been having. "Daddy, Sarah's being mean!"

_Well, ain't this a familiar scene?_ Jack thought as he watched the blacksmith scoop the boy into his arms.

"Oh?" Will began, already knowing what the child would say. "And what did she do this time?"

"She told me... she said that I had to go to bed right away, b-but-"

"It's past your bedtime," Sarah huffed from the doorway, clearly annoyed at having to chase the five year old around yet again.

Jack smiled at the sight of the young woman. He still clearly remembered the look on her naive young face the first time she had met Elizabeth. The poor love sick girl's heart practically broke right then when she laid eyes upon the beautiful young Governor's daughter. Even with rag like clothing, unkempt hair, and going days on end without a proper bath Elizabeth was still a sight to behold and Sarah instantly recognized the other girl as competition for her position as the future Mrs. Will Turner. If only the girl knew the full story behind the two, she'd realize that Elizabeth was no threat to her, but Jack, ironically, was.

"But I wanted to say goodnight to Daddy an' Papa Jack first!" Nathan whined.

"It _is_ well past your bedtime, Nathan," Will chided. "Why don't you say a quick good night to Jack and I'll come up to tuck you in?"

Nathan nodded sadly as Will set him back down on his own two feet. As soon as he could he walked over to Jack and gave him a warm hug. "Goodnight Papa Jack. Thank you for all the cake and birthday presents."

"Yer welcome lad," the pirate chuckled as he warmly returned the embrace. "Happy birthday."

With that Will scooped up the toddler into his arms. "Goodnight Jack," Will said as he made to go back inside with child in arm.

"Just a moment, Will," Jack said, grabbing the younger man by his arm and halting him in his tracks. "'Bout what we were discussin'."

Will sighed as he shifted Nathan so that his head was resting on the smith's shoulder. "I just need some time to think. A day at least."

Jack groaned. He didn't have a day, but he knew that telling Will no would only guarantee that the lad would not be joining him. "Alright, one day. Then I'll have ta set sail with or without ye."


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

"I think we should go," Elizabeth announced anxiously as she glanced at the sun setting over the horizon. "We've given them more than enough time, yet he _still_ hasn't shown up yet. We need to leave. _Now_."

Jack felt his eye tick in annoyance and his hands twitch with the urge to smack Elizabeth Swann for that comment. He held himself back, however, because he understood that Elizabeth was right. He had given Will more than enough time and they did have to set sail soon. The crew was restless and they needed to have their captain back. Yet the fact remained that he needed to know that Will was coming with them. He couldn't leave without Will and Nathan, he wouldn't allow himself to abandon them _again_.

"Need I remind ye Miss Swann," Jack began, his voice tight with frustration (frustration that was only partially directed at Elizabeth) "that _I'm_ the captain an' that this is _my ship_ an' that _I say_ when we set sail?"

Elizabeth didn't so much as flinch at the pirate's harsh tone. She merely frowned and placed her hands on her hips in a way that made Jack suddenly miss Anamaria. "You know I'm right Jack."

He did and he also knew that Elizabeth was not trying to undermine his authority or ruin his relationship with Will. No, she was just anxious. She needed to leave as soon as possible, because as a run away bride, she could not stay in one place for very long. The threat of her father or possessive fiancee finding her was constantly hanging over her head. Of course, Jack sympathized with her. As a wanted man himself he knew what it was like to be constantly on the run. The difference was that while Jack took pride in being wanted, Elizabeth was terrified and was desperate not to be found.

"She _is_ right, Jack," Gibbs sighed as he too gazed at the setting sun. "We are runnin' out of time. Ye promised the crew that we'd set sail by sun down an' dat's only a few minutes away. Like it or not, if Will ain' here by sunset, we'll have ta go."

The pirate captain felt his heart skip a beat at his first mate's words. The sun was already half way down! "Ye don' understand," Jack practically growled. "Neither of ye understand what I'm feelin'! They need me! Will, Nathan, an' ... they need me ta be there for 'em an' ye're both standin' there askin' me ta abandon me family?"

"Not abandon," Gibbs corrected gently. It was clear from the tone of his voice that Jack was losing his patience, and the older pirate certainly didn't want to be the one Jack blew up at when his patience ran out. "Jus'... let go."

"Let go?" Jack snapped, spinning around on his heels so that he was now staring Gibbs in the eye. "Let _go_? Let go of what? Of Will? Of Nathan? Of a child that hasn't even been bloody born yet?"

"What I think Mr. Gibbs is trying to say," Elizabeth cut in, stepping between the captain and his first mate, "is that Will has a very big decision to make. He has a life here; a home, a job, and people who consider him an honest law abiding citizen. Will had to abandon his old life and start this one so that he and Nathan could survive and just yesterday you asked him to start all over again. Jack, come what may, whatever Will's decision is _you'll_ have to accept it and carry on with your life, because it's what _he's_ going to do."

Dammit all to hell! The girl was right. This was Will's decision and if he chose not to show up today then Jack would have to just live with that. He had put his life on hold long enough, it was time to get back to business. _But I can't jus' abandon 'em! Li'l Nathan needs me._ Abandoning families was the pirate's way of life. His father had done it to him and he had done it himself to all those countless little bastards he'd produced over the years, but Nathan and the baby were special. They were different. They were...

"Will?"

Jack's ears perked up when he heard Elizabeth say the young man's name. He turned and was stunned to see Will Turner carrying two rather large sacks, one slung over his shoulder and the other tucked under his arm. Little Nathan was not far behind, a much smaller sack on his back as he carried his toy ship in his hands and his sword in his belt.

"Papa Jack!" Nathan squealed as he ran over to his other father. The five year old's eyes were practically glowing with joy and he was sporting the biggest smile Jack had ever seen. "Do we really get to live on your ship with you Papa Jack? Do I really get to be a pirate?"

There was a sudden stinging sensation in his eyes and Jack suddenly realized that he was on the verge of tears. His son was coming home with him. "Of course ye do lad!" Jack laughed as he scooped the boy into his arms and held him tightly. "Ye get ta live with yer Papa Jack fer ever an' ever!"

"Will, let me get those bags for you," Elizabeth offered gently only to be silently shrugged off by the blacksmith in question. It was then that Jack finally got a good look at Will. His head was lowered, his shoulders slumped, and his eyes were red with dark circles. Jack knew right then that Will wasn't ignoring Elizabeth, he was just too upset to speak. This obviously hadn't been an easy choice for the poor young man to make.

"Come on lad," Gibbs said quietly as he walked Will over to the row boat. "I'll help ye inta the boat." Jack watched as Will nodded mutely and followed the older pirate.

-+-+-+-

When Jack saw Will again, he was kneeling on the floor of his cabin going through all of his belongings. As soon as they had set foot on board Will had taken Nathan straight to Jack's quarters and hadn't come out since. Jack had of course been busy re-establishing his position as captain, but had made sure that food had been brought down for both Will and Nathan. Glancing over at the table, Jack could see that only one of them had eaten their dinner.

"Am I permitted entry?" Jack asked quietly from the door way, careful not to wake Nathan who was currently fast asleep on the bed.

Will looked up at him, chocolate brown eyes unreadable in the dim candle light. He shrugged. "It's your cabin."

"True," Jack agreed as he closed the door and entered his bed chamber, "but since I gave ye the spare key it is in fact now _yer_ cabin as well."

Will merely shrugged his shoulders, sighed, and continued folding his clothes and placing them into an empty trunk near Jack's bunk.

_If the whelp's givin' me the silent treatment again, I'll bloody strangle him._ "What's wrong Will?" Jack asked as he sat down beside the pregnant young man. "Talk ta me."

The smith frowned as he paused mid-fold. "I didn't want to go," he said quietly. "I'd lived in that port for five long years. I was appreciated..."

"I appreciate ye."

"...respected..."

"I respect ye."

"...wanted."

"Ye have no bloody idea how bad I want ye," Jack all but purred as he tucked a stray strand of hair behind Will's ear.

The smith frowned as he caught the pirate's hand and held it in his. "That's not what I meant and you know it Jack," Will sighed. "When I was in Port Royal I was nothing, I was less than that, until I became engaged to Elizabeth. Then, I became 'the Governor's future son-in-law.' But it was different back there. All I had to do was be me and I was accepted. For the first time in my life I felt like I was at home... like I belonged."

"Oh treasure," Jack sighed as he wrapped his arms around the smith's shoulders. "I _never_ wanted ye ta come with me if it meant that ye'd be unhappy. I only wanted ye here if _ye_ wanted to be here." That was lie, plain and simple. Jack wanted Will and Nathan at whatever the cost. He hadn't told anyone this, but if Will hadn't come along with them this time, Jack would have come back a month or two later and kidnapped them.

"But that's just the thing Jack, I do want to be here, I really do."

"Come again?"

"You were right," Will explained as he pulled out of Jack's grip. "You've given up so much for me, Jack, and all I ever did was push you away. Yet the more I pushed the more you refused to give up. You have proven yourself to be a good father and a good husb... human being." A slight blush began to color the blacksmith's cheek's at his slip up. He had almost called Jack his "husband", and the pirate had to bite his cheek to keep from smiling or teasing the young man. This was a serious moment, and mocking the smith for his slip up wouldn't be a good idea. "The very least I could do," Will continued, "was give you the family you'd been asking for."

"That's all wonderful news," Jack smiled, "but, Will Turner, do _ye_ really want ta be here?"

Will was silent as he calmly reached out and grasped Jack's hand and held it in his own. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

The pirate smiled as he used his free hand to tilt Will's chin so that they were looking each other in the eye. "I love ye."

"I... I know," he whispered as his eyes lowered in shame, but before Will could turn his head completely, Jack placed a kiss on his soft lips.


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

Time was passing far too quickly for Jack Sparrow. Three more months had come and gone in the blink of an eye and Jack had enjoyed every minute of it. Being able to see Will and Nathan any time he wanted was a wonderful gift. Watching Nathan's constant excitement at being out to sea for the first time was truly amusing. The lad had a tendency to make even the most ordinary experience for a seasoned pirate like Jack seem new again. Of course, Will being the overprotective parent that he is had to set down a few ground rules for the lad, such as that Nathan was not allowed to go near the railing of the ship and the boy must be constantly supervised by either himself, Jack, or (for some unknown reason) Elizabeth.

That didn't stop Jack from spending as much time as possible with the lad. The pirate had begun reading to the boy every night before bed time. This had peaked Nathan's curiosity and interest in learning, so Jack had managed to teach the child his letters. In just a few days Nathan was able to recite his letters from A to Z without hesitation and his ability to write those letters were almost remarkable. There was no doubt in Jack's mind that Nathan would soon be able to read and write better than Will.

Will, however, wasn't exactly enjoying his time on the Black Pearl. The younger man had become much more reserved lately, constantly taking walks around the ship late at night, and most troubling of all, he had begun speaking to Elizabeth. A small part of Jack was beginning to worry that the blacksmith was losing interest in him and would soon seek romantic comfort in Elizabeth. That theory was, of course, utterly ridiculous, but since Jack was the jealous type he still feared that it might be true.

One night, Will came to his cabin looking very grim as if he had something to say that would completely destroy Jack. Nathan had fallen asleep in the pirate's arms, but that didn't stop Jack from grasping the boy protectively as if Will were about to take him away.

"Jack," Will began, "come walk with me."

"I'd much rather sit," Jack whispered back as he stroked the sleeping five year old's soft brown curls. "If ye don' mind."

Will sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance. "Jack, I'm serious. We need to talk."

"I'm listening."

With another irritated sigh, Will pulled out a chair across from Jack and sat down. Will was now six months pregnant and had finally started to gain some much needed weight. The pirate could honestly say that he thought that Will was doing an amazing job at handling his pregnancy. The blacksmith went about being pregnant as if it were no major task, yet Jack knew if he had been unfortunate enough to be the one to end up pregnant he'd been driven mad (even more so). After all, being pregnant meant no rum, and true that according to Will's rules he wasn't able to drink any rum _now_ the pirate still managed to sneak a couple of drops when the whelp's back was turned.

"I've been thinking about our situation," the smith began, "and talking to Elizabeth-"

_I already don' like where this is goin',_ Jack thought.

"-and well, although I feel that I made the right choice for the time being, I don't think that our living situation will work out in the long run."

Now Jack was worried. He could practically hear his heart pounding in his ears as the young man spoke. "What are ye sayin'?"

"I'm saying that once the baby is born I think it would be best for all of us, if the children and I left the ship."

Jack frowned. He wasn't at all surprised that Will wanted to leave, yet that didn't change the fact that he felt hurt. When Will had told him that he wanted to be on the Pearl, he had thought that the pregnant man had meant that he wanted to be with _him_... forever. Apparently Will only really wanted to come with Jack because it was the most convenient thing to do at the time.

"I think we should talk elsewhere," Jack whispered as he carefully got up from his seat, making sure not to wake Nathan in the process. The pirate gently put the boy down on the bunk he now shared with Will, making sure that there was a blanket wrapped around the child and a pillow resting under his head before calmly walking out the door and hoping that Will was following.

"I know this is a bit upsetting for you, Jack," Will began quietly as he slowly closed the door to their cabin, "but you have to understand that a pirate ship is no place to raise small children. Nathan and the baby could easily get hurt, or worse."

"I wouldn' let anythin' happen ta them," Jack countered softly. "I'd protect them from any harm."

"But this is a _pirate ship_ Jack. What happens if we get attacked?"

"The Pearl's the fastest ship in the Caribbean. We could easily out run anyone."

"But I doubt the crew would stand for their Captain constantly turning away from a fight just because of two small children. What happens when you go to raid a merchant vessel? Even if the children were to just hide in our cabin and wait for the fight to be over there's still a chance that something can happen to them."

"Why are ye doin' this?" Jack snapped, suddenly very irritated by all of Will's valid points.

"Doing what?"

"Didn' ye say that the least ye could do was give me the family that I deserved? Why are ye takin' my children away from me?"

"I'm not!" Will practically yelled. His voice was more tired than angry and Jack could tell that his own tone had surprised the blacksmith a bit. "This isn't an easy choice for me Jack and I'd appreciate it if you didn't give me such a hard time!"

"Well how the bloody hell am I supposed ta react?" the pirate shot back. "Ye jus' told me that right after our baby is born ye're gonna take it away!"

The blacksmith opened his mouth to reply, but quickly shut it before any words could escape. "I don't want to argue with you Jack," Will sighed. "Can't we just have a calm, rational discussion?"

Part of Jack wanted to do just that, sit down and talk things out with Will and convince the blacksmith that leaving the Pearl with the children wasn't necessarily the best option, but an even bigger part of him wanted to rant and rave until Will backed down. As unlikely as that was, Jack was too upset to think clearly. "Discuss? Discuss what? How ye're gonna take me children away? Alright, let's talk about dat. I supposed ye'll smuggle them off in a boat in the middle of the night with the help of that _wench_ won't ye?"

"Elizabeth has _nothing_ to do with this," Will stressed. "We're just friends now."

"An' when exactly did that happen? Ye weren't even bloody _talkin'_ to her a few months ago." Jack knew that he was taking the conversation in a very dangerous direction, but at the moment he really didn't care. "Although I doubt that the two o' ye have been doin' as much _talkin'_ as ye'd like me ta believe."

Jack watched as Will's cheeks turned a very interesting shade of red as he balled his hands into fist and clenched his jaw shut. "What exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"All I'm sayin' is that ye're obviously doin' somethin' with her that ye ain't been doin' with me."

For a moment Will's eyes widened in shock at the pirate's comment, but the look of surprise was quickly replaced by one of anger as he smacked Jack with his open palm. Jack gasped as he neck practically cracked from the force of the blow. Licking his lip he wasn't surprised at all when he was met with the cooper taste of blood. As he turned back to face the blacksmith, Jack was not at all surprised by the heated look in the pregnant young man's eyes.

"I will not stand here and have Captain Jack Sparrow accuse _me_ of being unfaithful," Will practically growled before storming off back to their cabin.

Jack stood in his place on the deck for a few minutes before taking off below deck and heading towards the supply room. Once he was there he grabbed the first bottle of rum he saw and opened it. "To hell with Will Turner and his soddin' rules," Jack spat before he downed the whole bottle in one breath.


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

Jack frowned in disappointment as he tipped over his empty bottle of rum hoping that at least one final drop would fall out. Unfortunately for the pirate, the rum was gone and this time it wasn't Elizabeth's doing. "Bloody rum is always gone," the pirate grumbled. It might have been the middle of the day, but Jack was already completely sloshed. He held onto the helm tightly, knowing full and well that if he were to let go or move so much as an inch he'd end up falling flat on his face. He had been in this state for the past week now, and the entire crew was starting to get worried about him. At least twice a day Gibbs or Elizabeth have approached the pirate hoping to talk some sense into him, but as far as Jack was concerned if Will was going to act like an arse then so would he.

He hadn't spoken to the blacksmith in a week, not since the incident, and he doubted that he'd see Will anytime soon, even if it meant spending a few more nights not sleeping in his own cabin. It was hard to decided who was hiding from who, but since Jack had been stumbling around piss drunk for the past week he had to assume that Will was doing a better job of keeping out of sight. He couldn't blame him, having Jack Sparrow accuse you of being unfaithful certainly was an ironic and unexpected twist, and there wasn't any doubt in Jack's mind that Will's feelings had been hurt.

"Jack?" Elizabeth said from somewhere behind the pirate's back. He didn't bother to turn around or even look over his shoulder since he knew the action would certainly cause him to lose balance. "How are you feeling today?"

"Get me 'nother bottle o' an' I'll be feelin' bloody fantastic," Jack slurred as he chuckled at his own joke.

"That's what we thought," she muttered solemnly.

_We?_ Jack thought curiously. _Who is "we"?_ It was only after this thought went through Jack's head did he feel a strong hand grab him by the shoulder and spin him around. Before Jack's drunk mind could determine who the second party was he was shocked to find his mouth being smashed into another and a tongue being forced down his throat. Before Jack could even react to what was going on, he felt the hands that were resting on his shoulders push him away and heard the other spit on the deck.

"You taste like rum," Will said, before spitting again as if he were worried that he'd get drunk just from kissing Jack. "Well, more so than usual."

Jack frowned, squinting up at Will. His vision was slightly blurred and the sun was hitting him square in the face. "'M still mad at ye," he said.

"I know," Will sighed as he grabbed the pirate captain roughly by the shoulders and began dragging him away. "Take the helm Elizabeth."

Jack wanted so much to protest, to remind Will that he was the captain of this ship and didn't appreciate being dragged around like a disobedient child, but at the same time the way Will was taking charge of him was extremely erotic. As soon as the two of them were back in the captain's cabin Will pushed Jack into a near by chair and pulled off the pirate's hat and threw it across the room. Jack opened his mouth to protest but was shocked when he was met with a giant splash of water. He shivered and sputtered as the water soaked through all of his clothes. His drunken mind was having a tough time keeping up with everything that was going on. He didn't know whether to be furious or aroused.

When he finally blinked all the water out of his eyes he was surprised to see Will sitting on top of his table holding a plate of bread. "Eat," the pregnant man ordered as he all but shoved a slice of hard bread into his mouth. Jack spat it back out and checked to see if any of his teeth had been knocked out in the process.

"Wha' da bloody 'ell 'as gotten in ta ye!" Jack screeched. He couldn't take this abuse anymore. His head was pounding and he already had a massive erection between his legs. For once he wanted answers not actions and then after he got those answers he'd fuck Will until the blacksmith couldn't walk straight.

"As much as I enjoy knowing that I can send you over the edge with just a few words," Will began as he picked up another piece of bread, "I'd appreciate it if the captain of this ship sobered up and started acting like he had some sense." With that he tore off a slice of bread and put it into his mouth. Before Jack could ask Will what was going through his head he was shocked to have the young man grab the back of his neck and slam their mouths together, shoving the slice of bread in and forcing Jack to swallow.

This time it was Jack's turn to shove Will off of him. "Ye're wearin' me out," Jack practically gasped. "Ye know I can eat on me own don' ye?"

"Well, I wasn't sure whether or not you'd forgotten how to do that since you've been doing nothing but _drinking_ these past few days." Will smirked as he handed Jack the rest of the bread. Jack frowned, but proceeded to eat the bread like Will wanted. It was hard to know for sure if Will knew what he was doing to Jack, but one thing was for certain: Will was going to get it _bad_. "You've broken our agreement Jack, but since I hurt your feelings I think it's only fair that I let you off easy."

Jack frowned at he swallowed his mouthful of bread. "Hurt me feelin's? I wouldn'-"

"However, I don't appreciate the fact that you accused me of sleeping with Elizabeth when I have told you time and time again that I don't have any romantic feelings for her."

"Ye don' 'ave ta 'ave _feelin's_ fer someone ta _sleep_ wit' 'em, darlin'," Jack pointed out.

"That's beside the point Jack," Will sighed wearily. "My point is... Why would you accuse _me_ of sleeping with Elizabeth when it really bothered you when I accused _you_ of sleeping with her?"

Jack frowned as he considered Will's words. The boy had a point of course, but at the time he had thought it was true and felt it all needed to be said. "I was mad," he explained. "An' I wasn' thinkin' straight. All I wanted ta do was-"

"Hurt me?"

Jack nodded silently, still ashamed of what he had said and done. "I'm sorry."

"I know," Will whispered as he placed a hand on his round belly, "and I also know that we didn't finish our conversation last week."

"I ain't givin' up me family!" Jack shouted, but was cut off when Will once again grabbed the back of his neck and slammed their lips together.

"No arguments this time Jack, just words," Will panted once they finally parted.

Jack smiled as he licked his lips, still able to taste Will Turner on them. "Aye, I can do dat," he purred before taking another bite of his bread.

"I still stand by the fact that a ship is not a safe place to raise a family, but I am _not_ planning to keep the children away from you. You are still free to come and visit them whenever you want."

"But it ain't the same as bein' able ta seem 'em everyday, treasure," Jack pointed out. "An' avin' ta leave the baby so soon after it's born..."

"But not _right after_ it's born," Will pointed out. "After I have the baby, I'm going to be very... weak and I'll need someone to take care of me and Nathan and the baby. I was of course hoping that a certain pirate captain would be up to the task."

Jack smirked as he quirked an eyebrow in surprise. "So ye admit dat ye actually need me help? Dat's interestin'."

"Jack Sparrow, would you be willing to once again give up the open sea and the Black Pearl for _two months_ in order to help me with bed times, bath times, nap times, story times, diaper changes, and feedings?"

"An' where exactly will all this be takin' place?"

"Where ever port we decide to live in."

"We?"

Will smiled as he leaned forward to place a tender kiss on Jack's lips. "I care for you Jack Sparrow," Will breathed as he pulled a few inches away from Jack. The pirate shivered as he felt the boy's breath caress his skin and their noses rub together. "More than any sane man should and I want where ever my home is to be yours as well."

"But ye know me darlin'," Jack whispered, making sure that his lips brushed against Will's, "the sea is me only home."

"But what about your family?"

Jack smiled. "Aye. I'm sure we'll find ourselves a fine home, course ye'll 'ave ta be the one ta break the news ta dear li'l Nathan, treasure."

"Agreed," Will said as he once again closed the distance between them and began passionately kissing the other man.

Jack moaned as he wrapped his arms around the younger man's waist, pulling him into his lap. Will resist for a moment, perhaps worried that he'd crush Jack because of his newly acquired pounds, but after a few pulls and a couple of nibbles the blacksmith eventually slid off of the edge of the table and into Jack's lap. Jack smiled as Will wrapped his arms around the pirate's neck and began tangling his fingers into the pirate's dreadlocked hair. He sighed as he slipped his hand underneath the smith's shirt and began caressing Will's well rounded middle, enjoying the feel of his smooth skin.

The pirate captain groaned as Will pulled away from him, breaking the kiss. "Eat your bread Captain Sparrow," Will panted as he leaned in to caress Jack's neck with his nose. "I want you sober so you can enjoy the _full_ experience." With that, the blacksmith bit down on the man's shoulder and began sucking on him hard.

A strangled gasp escaped Jack's lips as he reflectively gripped onto Will even tighter. "Aye aye Mr. Turner."


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

As strange as it was to say, Jack Sparrow could _not_ stop smiling. Even now as he sat on the edge of his bunk slipping back into his pants, the Cheshire cat like grin that he was currently sporting simply would not go away. He tried biting his cheek, stubbing his toe, even pulling at his own hair, but he just kept grinning. _I suppose that's jus' proof it's been too bloody long,_ Jack mused as a small chuckle escaped his lips.

"What are you laughing about, pirate?" Will asked lazily as he shifted in bed.

If at all possible, Jack actually felt his smile widen as he turned and looked at his bed mate. "Nothin' treasure," Jack purred as he leaned in to press another kiss onto Will's swollen lips. Jack moaned happily as he crawled back into bed with the pregnant young man, hoping that all this kissing would lead to a much appreciated round two. "Tell me somethin' darlin'," he murmured, "Why is it that ye waited until now to do this?"

"I don't know," Will said seriously, shifting so that he was now resting on his elbow. "I suppose I just wasn't ready yet."

Jack frowned in slight confusion. Will had gotten pregnant by him _twice_ yet it had taken the blacksmith well over five months after they had properly began their relationship for the smith to consider himself ready to sleep with Jack. Strange. "Well, at least I know ye're ready now, so we can have more lovely moments jus' like this one."

Will's only reply was the give Jack a weak smile and sit up straighter. "Don't get too excited Jack," Will chided. "I'm six months pregnant and I don't have as much energy now."

"Well, all that means is that we're both on the same level, treasure," Jack pointed out jokingly. "Sides, if ye are goin' ta be leavin' me soon, I'll have ta get as much out of ye as possible."

"I see you're not as against the idea of my departure as you were earlier."

Jack shrugged as he placed a hand on Will's bare shoulder and began lazily tracing circles with his fingers. "I still stand by the fact that ye belong _here_, with _me_," he said softly, "but I know that ye're a very stubborn young man Will Turner and that it's near impossible to change yer mind once it's set on somethin'."

"So basically you're saying that although you don't support my decision, you'll support me anyway?" Will said slowly, making sure he got Jack's point straight. He shrugged. "I suppose that's good enough."

The pirate smiled as he repositioned himself so that his back was resting on the headboard before pulling Will closer so the boy was leaning on his bare chest and his head was resting on his shoulder. "Any thoughts on where ye wanted ta make a happy li'l home for ye an' the children?" he asked as he wrapped his arm around Will and began rubbing the boy's shoulder.

"I don't know," Will said idly. "All I know is that there are a few places that I can't go back to, like my last home... and Port Royal. I'd like to go somewhere where I'll know the children will be safe and where they can get a good education. I don't want them to be forced into piracy. Of course, I also want to be able to set up a shop so that I'll be able to provide for the children."

"Will ye be makin' swords again?"

"No," Will said simply. "It doesn't feel right anymore."

Jack nodded as he considered the younger man's words. They didn't have very many options then. Leaving the Caribbean was strictly out of the question since that was Jack's territory and to go out of it would mean that he wouldn't have easy access to his family. "What about Tortuga?"

Jack practically felt Will frown at the suggestion. "I'd rather not live there."

"Why not?"

"Because of everything I just said," Will sighed as he sat up to look Jack in the eye. "Jack, the last thing I want is for my children to grow up to become pirates, but with _you_ as their father the possibility of that happening is _nearly_ unavoidable. I want Nathan and the baby to at the very least have a chance of a _normal_ life by growing up in a _normal_ port."

"Well ye an' I obviously have very different definitions of the word 'normal.'"

"Obviously."

"Hear me out though, luv," Jack began, shifting so that he was now facing Will. "I know yer worried 'bout the children not gettin' a good education an' all, but what if _I_ were ta teach the children?"

"_You?_" Will asked sceptically.

"I know I may not look like the well bred type," Jack began, smiling smugly. It was always nice to know that his appearance and mannerisms still threw people off. "But I do happen ta know a thing or two 'bout literature an' such. I already taught Nathan his letters an' the lad's able ta count all the way ta forty without hesitation. "

Will furrowed his brow as he considered Jack's words. The pirate suddenly had the strong urge to lick the whelp's brow, but resisted since that would cause the young man to lose his train of thought. "Alright, so I know that I'll have someone to educate the children, but I still feel a bit uncomfortable about them growing up in a pirate town."

"To be fair, since the children have a pirate father it would be in the best interest of them to live in a pirate friendly port since that would mean that said father could visit his dear, sweet family without any fuss or fear of being taken in by the authorities."

Will let out a short laugh, rolling his eyes at Jack's logic. "I'll consider it," Will sighed. "That's all I'll say for now."

"Fine whelp," Jack shrugged as he pulled a painfully exaggerated pout onto his features. "Have it yer way."

The two sat in comfortable silence for a while, Will resting most of his weight on Jack's side as the pirate held the blacksmith in his arms and smiled contently to himself. He istill/i hadn't managed to wipe the stupid grin off of his face. "I... I should go darlin'," Jack said after what felt like an eternity. "Won't do fer the Captain ta spend the whole day in bed."

The smile on his face began to falter slightly as the pirate captain shifted off of the bed only to be pulled back down by a strong hand on his arm. With very little effort at all, the blacksmith had Jack pinned underneath him, smiling like the cat that ate all the cream. "Well, I can't let the captain go without a proper send off," Will commented seductively.

"Well, when ye put it that way..."

-+-+-+-

At this point, Jack's cheeks were positively aching from all the smiling he had been doing. Lord was he a sight! He would have to straighten himself out before he went back on deck. _Serious Sparrow, serious!_ he chanted mentally as he adjusted the sash wrapped around his thin waist. He had the bloody thing half way adjusted before bursting out into a fit of giggles.

_It ain't that big o' deal Jack!_ he scolded himself. _Men yer age have sex all the time!_ Then again, most men didn't go on six month long dry spells only to be treated to two rounds of mind blowing, middle of the day, sex. _It's good ta be the Captain._

With that final thought in his head, Jack managed at long last to put away the foolish grin he had been wearing all afternoon and replace it with a look more fitting the captain of the Black Pearl. That was until he walked out his cabin door and was greeted by a gaggle of pirates all staring at him with knowing smiles. Jack frowned at the sight, cocking his head to the side in slight confusion. "What are all o' ye lookin' at?" he barked only to be rewarded with a massive chorus of hoots and applause.

Any normal man would have died from embarrassment, crawled under a rock and died or probably blush like a fool, but he was no normal man. He was Captain Jack Sparrow, and as such he did not blush or hide or die from embarrassment. Instead, he swept off his hat with a grand flourish and took a much deserved bow. This of course only caused the crew the cheer even louder. Jack knew that when Will found out about all this he would certainly be in a heap of trouble, or worse, but he really didn't care right now. What he cared about was that he just had sex with Will Turner, _twice_ in one afternoon, a feat that none of these poor bastards would ever accomplish because _they_ weren't Captain Jack Sparrow.


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures. 

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

"So things are finally startin' ta warm up between ye an' William, aye Cap'n?" Gibbs asked between pulls of rum.

Jack smiled knowingly to himself at his first mate's choice of words. "Aye, things 'ave certainly gotten _warmer_ lately," he laughed as he took a sip of water only to frown in disappointment. Since he was now committed fully to giving up his rum, Jack had begun drinking water instead, hoping that he could somehow trick himself by pretending that it tasted like rum. He was wrong of course. He missed the drink, especially since every other man (and woman) on board was able to freely drink to their hearts content. It was maddening to have to sit and watch everyone else enjoy their drink, while he had to keep dry just to please Will.

He frowned as he glanced up at the night sky. The air was warm and the moon and stars were out lighting up the seas. On nights like this, all he wanted to do was drink himself numb and find some pleasurable company, and since Jack couldn't do the former, he would be more than happily do the latter.

"I should go see how Will's doin'," Jack said casually to his first mate.

Gibbs laughed, knowing full and well what Jack was really planing to do. "Good night Cap'n," he chuckled as he downed the rest of his rum.

Jack smiled as he swaggered over towards his cabin, knowing that Will would be inside and most likely preparing himself for sleep. Just as the blacksmith had warned Jack before, he no longer had as much energy as before and slept frequently and for long stretches of time. The pirate was more than willing to let the lad get his rest, but he knew that a quick shag wouldn't hurt too much.

When Jack was mere inches away from his cabin he was surprised to hear voices coming from the other side of the door. Will never allowed anyone except himself and Nathan inside the cabin unless Jack said otherwise, so Jack was surprised to say the least that, at this time of night, someone would actually manage to gain entrance. He frowned as he carefully eased the door open and listened. He was only slightly surprised when he recognized the other voice as belonging to Elizabeth, but the conversation the two were having was what really got him.

"So word around the ship is that you've finally let Jack have his way with you," Elizabeth said teasingly. The pirate could practically _hear_ the smile in her voice.

"Pirates," Will scoffed, most likely rolling his eyes at the comment. "They gossip more than a group of old women!"

"Well, is it true?"

There was a brief silence between the two and Jack had to strain his ears to determine whether or not they were whispering. "Why do you care?" Will asked in a slightly indignant tone.

"I'm just curious!" she said innocently.

There was another, much longer pause this time and Jack could tell that Will, little prude that he is, was considering whether or not to continue this discussion or change the subject completely. "Yes," Will said finally, "it's true."

"How was it?" she asked, this time with more concern in her voice. Just what was this girl getting at?

"Jack's happy isn't he?"

"Well, that's rather obvious. He hasn't stopped grinning since. But I wasn't asking how was it for _him_, I want to know how it was for iyou/i."

"I don't know," Will said quietly.

"How can you not know? You were there!"

"I know, but... I guess I just wasn't ready to have a _physical_ relationship with him."

"But you slept him, _several times_," she said bluntly, confusion clear in her voice. "Why did you do it if you weren't ready?"

"You don't understand," he sighed, weariness clear in his tone. "Jack _needed_ me to sleep with him. If he didn't, he'd just keep drinking and drinking and drinking and then I'd have to break our agreement. I'd have to _leave him_. Our deal, our relationship, can only work if Jack has sex with me. I have to help him break his addiction and if that means sleeping with him before I'm ready then so be it."

Silence fell upon the two and Jack suddenly felt as if he'd been stabbed in the stomach. He had been forcing himself on Will this entire time and he was too wrapped up in his own pleasures to realize the boy didn't want him. It was then that the weak smile Will had given him in bed a few weeks ago made sense. He wasn't worried about his stamina, he just didn't want to sleep with him!

The two talked for a few minutes more, but Jack didn't bother to listen in on the rest. He had heard everything he needed to know. A few minutes later, Jack heard the sound of a chair scrapping across the floor and knew right away that Elizabeth was leaving. He ducked out of site as the young woman passed, not noticing that the pirate was there. As soon as she was completely out of sight, Jack went ahead and slipped back into his cabin.

A sudden storm of guilt and anger began whirling inside of him. He took a very small amount of pleasure when he slammed the cabin door shut, causing the blacksmith to practically jump out of his skin in surprise. The younger man turned to look at him with a look that was more annoyance than actual surprise, yet Jack didn't even flinch.

"Is something wrong?" Will asked, annoyance slowly turning into concern as he took in the other man's appearance.

"I dunno William, is there?"

Will frowned, confusion clear on his face. "What are you talking about?"

"Why were ye talkin' ta Elizabeth 'bout our sex life?" Jack asked bluntly enjoying the way Will's face turned beet red at his words.

"You were _eavesdropping_?"

"Aye, an' a damn good thin' I was too, otherwise I never would 'ave found out that the idea of havin' sex with me repulsed ye."

Jack watched as the other man's eyes widened, but Jack couldn't tell if it was from shock or outrage. "I said no such thing!"

"But ye _did_ say that ye didn't want ta sleep with me, didn' ye?"

"I..." Will began, but stopped as if he realized that he was backed into a corner. He frowned as he turned away in shame. "I... I'm sorry, but I did what I thought was right."

Jack frowned as he felt his insides slowly turn cold. He had never felt so humiliated in his entire life. "Why didn' ye say anythin' ta me?" he asked, trying his best to keep his anger in check. "Why did ye go an' tell _Elizabeth_ instead? D'ye have any idea how humiliatin' it is ta find out that someone ye _love_ is talkin' 'bout ye behind yer back?"

Will frowned as he turned and gave Jack and indignant look. "Says the man who got a standing ovation after making love to me," Will scoffed.

The pirate felt the corner of his lips tick upward at the memory. It was a very proud day to be Captain Jack Sparrow, but now the news of Will's real feelings about their little encounter had tainted it... just a bit. "Alright, so that was my mistake," he admitted, "but what ye did was much worse."

"I just wanted to help you Jack," Will sighed. "The way you reacted to us leaving... I knew I hurt you, because I had threatened to take something away from you, and losing your drink as well... I saw you struggling and I wanted to help, I wanted to give you something that you were longing for, _begging me for_. I hoped that, if you got that then you would be motivated to stay sober. I didn't want to lose you."

"Lose me? Will I was never goin' any where."

A weary sigh escaped the blacksmith's lips as he slowly gather his thoughts. "Jack, you and I both know that even if we hadn't had that argument about the children, you would have still be... resentful towards me."

Jack blinked several times in confusion. "What are ye talkin' 'bout?"

"I know you were sneaking drinks behind my back," he explained, "and I think part of the reason for that was because you were frustrated with me. Don't tell me that you didn't curse me for making you go six long months without any... pleasurable company."

Jack suddenly felt like the world's biggest ass. He could hardly believe what he was hearing. The only reason Will slept with him, was because the blacksmith thought, no _knew_ that Jack was subconsciously pressuring him. Looking back at all the times that he had moaned and groaned about Will's lack of affection, he could see that he was really just behaving like a selfish bastard. "Why is it so hard for ye ta do this with me anyway?"

"Because it's wrong," Will said simply. "Because what we do is immoral and against the word of God and decent society... because I hate how good it makes me feel when you touch me or look at me or tell me you love me."

Jack frowned at the pregnant young man's jumbled words. The more Will spoke the more lost Jack felt. "I don' follow," he whispered. "Ye hate the way it makes ye feel, yet ye did it anyway knowin' that ye'd only end up miserable... why?"

"Because I..." he started, only to stop mid way as if the words had suddenly become too hard to say. Will sniffed as he turned away in shame and cradled his swollen stomach brokenly. Jack watched, his heart breaking in half as silent tears began to streak across the younger man's golden cheeks. Will didn't have to speak another word. Jack already knew what had motivated the smith to put himself in such a miserable state.

"Ye don' 'ave ta do this ta yerself, luv," Jack soothed as he closed the distance between the two of them, wrapping his arms around the emotional young man. "Ye don' 'ave ta do anythin' for ole Jackie. I ain't good enough for ye anyway." The two shifted as Will moved to burry his face in Jack's shoulder. "I don' want ye ta do anythin' ye aren't ready fer. Tell ye what whelp, we can take things as slow as ye want. We can wait, til ten years after the baby's born if that's what ye want."

A muffled laugh managed to escape Will's lips and Jack smiled as he rested his head on the smith's shoulder. "I'm sorry Jack," Will sobbed, "I'm _so_ sorry... I was stupid and scared."

"No ye weren't," he sighed as he rubbed soothing circles onto his back. "Ye were jus' bein' selfless, is all."

"I love you Jack."

Jack felt himself freeze up as his breath got caught in his throat. He knew, he knew this whole time, but to finally hear the words out loud... His eyes began to sting and his vision blurred slightly. He tried his best to form words, but his throat was remarkably tight. "I... I know, luv," he managed as he tightened his grip around Will's frame. "I know."


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Thirty**

"When's the baby coming?"

Jack laughed softly at Nathan's question. The boy had been asking him and Will that same question over and over again for the past nine months and now that Will was due shortly, the lad seemed keen on asking that question at least once a day. Of course, he always got the same answer. "Soon enough lad," Jack responded softly.

"Oh," Nathan said, disappointment clear in his voice. "Why?"

Jack smiled as he patted the lad's head affectionately. Will was below deck resting and Jack had thought that perhaps letting Nathan "help" him steer the ship would take the lad's mind off of all this baby nonsense, but alas, the child had a one track mind.

_Least it's a calm day._ That it was. The seas were calm and the wind was in their favor. It was a perfect day to teach Nathan how to steer.

"Ye see son," Jack began, "it takes nine long months fer a baby ta be born."

"Why?"

"Because durin' those nine months the baby has ta get strong so that it'll be ready ta survive outside the mommy's, or in this case yer daddy's, stomach."

"Did _I_ take nine months to be born?" Nathan asked innocently, tipping his head backwards so that he could look up at Jack as well as rest his head on the pirate captain's flat stomach.

"Course ye did lad," Jack chuckled. "All babies do."

"What was I like as a baby?"

Jack suddenly felt his throat tighten and his face turn grim. "I... I dunno, son," he said apologetically. "I wasn' there."

"Why?"

The pirate swallowed hard as a lump slowly began to form in his throat. "Because I didn' know that yer Da' was pregnant back then." Jack felt his heart break in half as he spoke the words. He couldn't help but feel guilty that he had missed Nathan's birth, even if it wasn't his fault that Will had never told him about the child's existence until recently. He wished that he could go back in time and fix things. He wished that he had known that Will was pregnant and in love with him back then, but it was too late now. All he could do was hope to do better with their second child.

"Oh," Nathan said as he gripped the lower half of the helm as best as he could. Unfortunately his tiny fingers were barely able to wrap themselves around the wood. "Where are we going?"

A weak smile spread across, happy to change the subject. "We are looking for a decent port to make birth in so yer Da' can have the baby."

"So the baby's coming _today_?" Nathan gasped happily.

"No," he chided, "we're jus' gettin' _ready_ fer the baby ta come. It'll still take at least a few more days."

"But, can't you make Daddy have the baby _today_?" Nathan pleaded. "I think it'll be much better if he has it today, so we don't have to wait any more."

Jack merely smiled at the five-year-old's words, deciding this time to take a different approach to the child's questions; to not say anything. He merely stood in silence listening to the wind's gently blowing and the splashes of the waves against the ship.

His silence was interrupted when he heard the sound of heavy footsteps climbing up the stairs. He knew right away that it was Will, since the pregnant man's pace had gotten much slower and more laboured lately. Jack turned and smiled at him, he would have loved to help the boy up the stairs, but the last time he did that, he got a brutal tongue lashing about how Will was perfectly capable of taking care of himself and that Jack was being an over protective bastard. Jack frowned as he took in Will's feature. He looked much more breathless than usual, his lightly tanned face looked much paler as if all the color had been drained from his golden skin, and his hair was sticking to the side of his face with sweat.

"Ye alright darlin'?" Jack asked worriedly as he motioned for Gibbs, who had been standing not far behind him, to take the helm. "Ye look positively drained."

"I'm fine," Will breathed calmly as he placed a hand on his massive middle. It suddenly occurred to Jack that Will was faking his relaxed tone so as not to worry little Nathan. "Just wondering... how long until we make for port?"

"Not too long," Jack said, trying to be just as calm as the other man. "We're 'bout two days away from a lovely little port town. Why d'ye ask?"

"Nothing in particular," Will said calmly as his hand began to shake as he stroked his well rounded stomach. "Just that... I'm in labor."

There was a collective gasp as everyone within earshot turned to stare wide eyed at Will before turning to gaze at Jack. The pirate felt his eyebrow tick and his stomach turn stone cold at the blacksmith's words. "No yer not," Jack laughed nervously.

Will frowned, cocking his head to the side and giving Jack a very troubled look. "Yes I am."

"_No_, yer not," Jack countered as large black spots began to flood his vision. "Ye're barely nine months along, how can ye be in labor?"

"Because my water broke," Will said carefully.

With that declaration Jack wobbled before falling flat on his back and having the whole world fade into blackness.

-+-+-+-

Jack coughed and sputtered uncontrollably as he was suddenly shocked back into the waking world. His head was spinning, his skull was pounding, and he felt very much dismayed by the cold clammy feeling spreading across his body as his clothes clung to every inch of his skin. "What... where..." he sputtered as he began to blink the water out of his eyes.

"You're awake," he heard Will say. His voice seemed very muffled and distant and Jack could just barely see him through his hazy field of vision.

The pirate groaned, finally realizing that he was laying flat on his back on the deck of the Pearl. The harsh sun was practically burning his eyes and he had to struggle to lift his arm to block out the rays. "What happened?"

"You fainted," Will said flatly as he sat down on the deck beside Jack and helped him into a sitting position.

"Fainted?" Jack repeated as he rested most of his weight against Will's shoulder. "Why?"

"There's no time for all these questions," he heard Elizabeth say frantically. "Will's in labor, Jack! We have to land the ship _now_!"

Jack felt his head pound like a drum at the woman's panicked words. "In labor? _Now_?" Will was in labor! They were going to have the baby!

"Elizabeth, please!" Will scolded, "don't upset him." The younger man softened his gaze as he turned his attention towards Jack. "Just stay calm Jack," Will instructed as he held Jack's hand in his own. "Breathe, breathe."

If Jack were the type of man to blush or turn red from embarrassment, then he'd be as red as a tomato right now. How was it that Will could be so bloody calm when _he_ was the one _in labor_? "It's alright, luv," he said, patting the back of Will's hand gently. "I'm fine now." Awkwardly, Jack stood up, his legs shaking and his stomach churning. He felt less than confident, let alone coherent. How was he expected to think calmly when the man he loved was about to give birth. "Elizabeth," Jack said in the most authoritative tone that he could muster, "take the Helm! Mr. Gibbs, look at the maps, see if there's _any_ nearby port where we can land! An' the rest o' ye," he barked, turning his attention to the crew, "be ready ta weigh anchor at the first sight o' land!" Jack stood proudly as he watched his men snap into action, but his whole demeanour softened when he felt a small hand tugging at his sash.

"Papa Jack?" Nathan began innocently, his brown eyes wide with curiosity and confusion. "Is the baby coming _now_?"

Jack frowned as he looked over at Will who was still on the floor, struggling to get back up. "Aye lad," Jack said softly as he knelt down to eye level with the five year old. "The babe's comin' now, an' right now, yer Da' an' I 'ave ta get ready fer it ta be born. Why don' ye go into yer cabin an' wait fer us there?"

Nathan pouted, his eyes suddenly filling with worry and panicked tears. "What's going to happen to Daddy? He looks hurt!"

"I'm just fine darling," Will said assuringly, although it was hard to take him seriously when he was still stuck on the deck, face red with pain, and sweat pouring from his brow. "You just be a good boy and go do as your Papa says."

The child's pout quickly turned into tears at his father's words. The five year old was instantly at Will's side, wrapping his arms around the pregnant man's neck protectively. "I don't wanna be a big brother if Daddy has ta get hurt!" Nathan sobbed.

Jack was surprised when he heard a loud sniff come from behind him. He turned, half expecting to see Elizabeth choked up with emotion, but was stunned when he saw Gibbs wiping away at the tears running down his face.

"I'm not hurt Nathan," Will soothed as he cupped the boy's face in his hands. "Everything is going to be just fine, I promise. You just go to your cabin and before you know it, this'll all be over and you'll have a new little brother or sister. But you have to be strong, because the baby and I need you to be brave. Can you do that for us Nathan?" The boy sniffed and nodded his head sadly. "There's my good boy. Now go wait for us in your cabin."

"I love you Daddy," Nathan sniffed again, as he hugged Will even tighter.

"I love you too Nathan," he smiled, "Now go on."

With that, Nathan went below, his head hanging low and tears running down his cheeks.

"Gibbs," Jack said softly, "take the helm. Elizabeth, go look after Nathan."

The two nodded as they did as Jack ordered. The pirate had to say that he was quite impressed by the way Will was handling all of this. He was in the middle of labor yet the lad was the calmest of them all! Jack smiled as he went to help Will into a standing position. "How are ye feelin' darlin'? Any contractions?"

"A few," Will huffed as he finally managed to get back on his own two feet, but ended up leaning most of his weight on Jack anyway. "But nothing to lose sleep over."

Jack snorted, rolling his eyes at the young man's comment. It was so typical of the blacksmith to play down his injuries, even in labor. _Stubborn whelp!_ "Mr. Gibbs, have ye checked the maps?"

"Aye Cap'n, several times," the other pirate said, "an' there ain't no civilized port fer miles."

"I don' care if it's civil or not!" Jack snapped. Jack watched as Will turned to him, a quizzical look on his face. "We just need ta find _somewhere_ fer ye ta give birth, treasure. We ain't gotta stay there fer long."

Will visibly grimaced as he was hit by another contraction, this one obviously much stronger than any of the others. "I don't think we'll have much time," he groaned. "I'm not sure if the baby wants to wait!"


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Thirty-One**

Will visibly grimaced as he was hit by another contraction, this one obviously much stronger than any of the others. His face was practically bright red and his hands were clenched into fists. "I don't think we'll have much time," he groaned. "I'm not sure if the baby wants to wait!"

Jack could practically hear his heart pounding in his ears. He felt like kicking himself for not making for land sooner. Will couldn't just give birth in the middle of the ocean! They needed a doctor or a midwife to look after him. "Alright darlin'," Jack sighed, "let's get ye ta me cabin." Will nodded, not bothering to protest Jack's orders, making it obvious that the boy knew that Jack was out of ideas.

It was a bit of a struggle to get Will below deck. The younger man's massive weight gain had slowed his pace and the fact that he was in the middle of labor didn't exactly help things either. When they finally got Will into the bunk, Jack couldn't help but feel like a complete failure. He had convinced Will to completely uproot himself from his former life, promising him safety and care and in the end failing miserably

"I'm sorry I put ye in this position," Jack muttered pitifully as he helped Will to get comfortable.

"What are you talking about?" Will asked, brow furrowing in confusion.

"I promised ta take care o' ye an' failed."

"You didn't fail Jack," Will assured as he grasped the other man's hand in his. "You are a good man and you did your best to help me because you love me. No one could have seen this coming, not even Captain Jack Sparrow, so don't go blaming yourself for something you can't control!"

The pirate smiled weakly at Will's words. It was always nice to hear the lad speak positively about him. "Ye still need a doctor luv," Jack said solemnly as he began rubbing the back of Will's hands with his thumb. "What are we supposed ta do now? The baby's on its way an' we ain't any where near port."

Will frowned, slumping his shoulders. "If worse comes to worse, _you'll_ have to deliver the baby."

Jack felt his bronzed skin turn a ghostly white at the thought of delivering their child himself. He didn't even know how the baby was supposed to come _out_ and being the one to deliver it was not exactly how he had hoped to find out. In fact, Jack would have been much happier never knowing how the kid came into the world. "I can't do that, treasure!" Jack blathered, "I put babies _in_ their mums, not take 'em out!"

The blacksmith winced as he was hit by yet another contraction. "Well, unless you have a medic on board, I think you're going to have to learn how and soon!"

The pirate sat up straighter as he was suddenly hit by a brilliant idea. It was as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning. The pirate rushed over to his personal charts and spread them across the table. He could practically feel the younger man's questioning eyes on him as he studied the maps intently. "It could work," he muttered to himself. "If the wind is in our favor..."

"Jack, what are you-"

"No time ta explain, darlin'," Jack said hurriedly as he gathered up his maps and started to head towards the door. He knew that Will was looking at him as if the pirate had lost whatever loose grasp he had on sanity, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that he had a plan and that he actually might be able to save Will and the baby. "Ye jus' stay put an' try ta keep that baby from comin'."

"And how exactly am I supposed to do that?" he snapped.

Jack shrugged. "Try crossin' yer legs."

-+-+-+-

Since the winds had been in their favor, something that Jack knew full well they had Calypso herself to thank for, the Black Pearl had made it to the island in record time. One look at his spyglass confirmed what Jack had suspected and he allowed himself a brief moment to rejoice in his own brilliance. The Sea Witch was docked beside the island which her captain, Anamaria, had claimed as her own. Jack had been to the island only once before, but with his compass he was able to find its location again without any fuss. He recalled during his last meeting with Anamaria that she had mentioned acquiring a doctor as part of her crew. That was quite awhile ago and Jack could only hope that said medic was still with her and in good shape.

"What be the plan now Cap'n?" Gibbs asked.

"The plan is ta get a boat ready," Jack announced as he tucked his spyglass away, "Mr. Turner an' I shall be goin' ashore."

"D'ye really think that Anamaria would be willin' ta allow ye on ta her land?" the other pirate asked, obviously remembering how possessive Anamaria was of her territory (even if it wasn't officially her property to begin with).

"I gave her a ship," Jack reminded him. "She owes me."

"Actually Cap'n I believe ye gettin' her the Sea Witch made the two o' ye _even_."

Jack frowned at his first mate's words. "Well, I suppose I'll jus' 'ave ta risk bein' _uneven_ with the lass again."

"Jack!" The pirate flinched as he heard the voice of Elizabeth Swann as the young woman approached. "I'm coming with you," the girl announced, a stubborn gleam lighting her brown eyes.

Jack grimaced. As much as he liked the girl, he did _not_ want her coming to the birth of his child. Hell, he didn't even want _Nathan_ to be there when the baby was born, but that was for a different reason entirely. "Sorry lass, boat's full."

"What?"

"No more room! Already got meself, Will, unborn baby-"

"Jack please," she sighed in exasperation as the pirate hurriedly brushed past her, "you'll need me there. You can't expect to row the boat _and_ tend to Will at the same time. Not to mention actually being able to get him _out_ of the boat when you actually reach shore."

_And what makes ye think ye'd be able ta help lift Will's_ boot _let alone Will himself?_ Jack thought irritably. "What 'bout Nathan? Ye're supposed ta be watchin' him."

"He's sleeping," Elizabeth pointed out, "besides, _Gibbs_ can watch him. Nathan likes him."

Jack groaned as he paused in his steps to turn and look the young woman in the eyes. "Fine, ye can come," Jack said irritably, "but ye 'ave ta remember that this is a very special moment fer me an' Will. _Our_ baby is 'bout ta come inta the world very soon an'-"

"Don't worry Jack," Elizabeth cut in, smiling softly at the pirate, "I won't get in the way."

-+-+-+-

"Jus' breath darlin'," Jack coached as he held onto the pregnant young man. "Take deep breaths. In an' out. There's a good lad." Jack had never felt so worried in his life. The sight of Will gasping and moaning in pain was enough to tie his stomach in a thousand little knots and his heart to completely shatter. All he wanted right now was for Will to feel better, for their baby to be born healthy, and for things to go back to the way they should be.

Will moaned as he tossed his head back in exhaustion. "Are we almost there?" he gasped.

Jack frowned as he looked over at Elizabeth who was doing her best to row as quickly as possible and not say a word. Her face was red and sweat was dripping off her brow. For a moment he was glad she was there, but he still rather have had someone with a bit more upper body strength do the rowing. "Almost there treasure," he assured.

Glancing over at the fast approaching shore, he could vaguely make out the slim figure of Anamaria, standing on the beach waiting for them. She was standing there with her hands on her hips and a displeased look on her face. There were a gaggle of men surrounding her and Jack knew right away that it was her crew. From what he could see, the island had become much more... lived in since he had last been there. There were huts now and woman and children. Apparently Anamaria was turning a small deserted island into a bloody village!

As soon as they landed on the beach, Jack stepped out of the long boat and walked up to Anamaria, his face as stern as could be and his eyes flashing with worry.

"Captain Jack Sparrow," Anamaria said slowly, a dangerous smirk gracing her lips. "Jus' wha' d'ya think you're doin' comin' on ta _my island_ without permission."

"I 'ave an emergency of the medical sort," he said seriously. "D'ye have a doctor among yer crew... er... people?"

The dark skinned woman frowned as she took in Jack's features. She had never seen him this serious before. "Wha be the emergency?" she asked just as Will let out a cry of pain. Anamaria's frown deepened as she looked in the boy's direction. "Is dat Will Turner?"

"Aye," Jack said grimly. "An' right now he's in the family way an' needs ta see a doctor right now."

Jack watched as the female pirate's jaw dropped and her eyes doubled in size. "Are you sayin' he's havin' a baby?" she gasped. "How?"

"No time ta explain," Jack said urgently. "Doctor? _Now_?"

Anamaria nodded slowly, still in shock from the information Jack had just dropped on her, but Jack could tell that she was forcing herself to think straight. "Claude! Remy!" she barked. "Go help dat man outta the boat. Paulo, go get the Doctor. Tell 'im we got an emergency."

"Aye, aye ma'am," the three men in question said in unison as they all snapped to do as they were told. Jack watched as two of the three, Remy and Claude, went to carry Will out of the boat. Both were large men and easily lifted the pregnant young man as if they were carrying an injured child, but that didn't stop Will from moaning in pain as they did so.

"Come, I'll take you ta the Doctor's hut," Anamaria said, pulling Jack's attention away from Will. He followed her to what appeared to be the second largest hut in the makeshift village (assuming that the largest would be Anamaria's) and watched as Will was taken inside. The pirate turned to look behind him and wasn't at all surprised to see that Elizabeth was following them. "You don' wanna be in there girl," Anamaria told her and for a moment Jack wanted to kiss the pirate Captain. Well, if she actually managed to get Elizabeth to stay outside the tent _then_ he'd kiss her.

"Will's my friend," Elizabeth countered. "He needs me."

"He needs _Jack_," she argued. "Jack put dat baby in there an' Jack's gonna help take it out. You'll jus' be in the way!"

Jack raised a questioning eyebrow at the dark skinned woman. He was impressed that she knew he was the father without anyone telling her. It must have been because of how concerned Jack had been or the fact that Anamaria remembered how fond of Will Jack had been back when Will was aboard the Black Pearl six years ago.

"I don't care," Elizabeth said stubbornly. "I'll just be the midwife then."

Anamaria scoffed and rolled her eyes at the girl. "You're not gonna like wha you'll see in there," she said just before stepping out of the way of the entrance. Well, it looks like female captain wasn't going to get that kiss after all.

Jack entered first and watched in horror as the two crewmen helped to remove Will's trousers. He felt a cry of protest well up in his throat, but Elizabeth's gentle hand on his shoulder reminded him that they were just trying to help. As soon as Jack looked back the two had pulled a blanket over Will's lower regions and were moving towards the exit. Jack and Elizabeth stepped out of their way, leaving the three of them and the Doctor alone in the hut.

The Doctor was a middle aged looking man, with a balding scalp and serious face. He didn't really look like a doctor to Jack, but as long as the man knew what he was doing he didn't care. Anamaria trusted him, so he must have been competent.

"You mus' be the father," he said in greeting.

"Aye Doctor...?"

"Just 'Doctor' is fine," he smiled.

Jack frowned turning over his shoulder to glance at Elizabeth only to find that the girl was equally confused. The man must have been wanted for something, that was the only reasonable explanation for not wanting his given name to be known.

"You girl," he said, obviously addressing Elizabeth, "Come here. Captain, go hold the patient."

Jack nodded as both of them went to do as they were told. He went to sit behind Will who was currently sitting of the floor with his legs spread apart. Jack shifted so that the boy would be leaning on his chest and wrapped his arms around the younger man so that he could support him better. His heart was hammering, his stomach was churning and his mouth had never been so dry in his entire life. He could not believe that he was actually about to _watch_ Will give birth. He was just glad that he was on this end instead of at the other.

"How ye feelin', luv?" he whispered into the young man's ears.

Will's whole body was covered in sweat and he was breathing rather hard, but he hadn't complained once about the pain since he had started feeling contractions. "So hot," he panted and Jack felt his heart break just a little at his words. The pirate looked over at the Doctor, silently asking him what to do, just as Elizabeth handed him a cloth and a bowl of water. Silently, Jack dipped the cloth into the bowl, letting it absorb all the water before gently rubbing it against Will's burning skin. The boy sighed in relief as the water slid across his red face and Jack himself felt just a tiny bit better.

The pirate watched as the Doctor lifted the blanket covering Will's lower regions. He watched as Elizabeth's face turn three shades of green at the sight and thanked his lucky stars that he hadn't seen what was going on at that end. "Well, it looks like we'll be able ta start pushin' now," he said carefully just as Elizabeth collapsed on the floor in a dead faint. All three men glanced over at her in shock before the Doctor spoke again. "She's down," he said casually. "Captain!"

Anamaria entered the tent as soon as she was called, not bothering to look at Elizabeth's unconscious form. "Told dat girl she wouldn' like wha' she saw," she said, shaking her head before taking over as "midwife."

"Alright... uh..." the Doctor began, but stopped when he realized he didn't know his patient's name.

"William," Jack supplied helpfully.

"William," he said with a thankful smile in Jack's direction, "We're goin' to start pushin'. As soon as you feel the next contraction, I want you to push as hard as you can, understand?"

Will nodded and Jack felt a small whimper escape from his own lips. He was so glad he wasn't the one giving birth. He gulped as he grasped the younger man's hand in his before placing a loving kiss on the boy's temple. They were really going to do it and he didn't feel ready at all!

Before he knew it, the boy was pushing, squeezing down on his hand with all his might and Jack suddenly realized holding hands was a mistake. He grimaced as Will pushed with all his might as the others took turns chanting things like "Push Will, push!" and "You can do it boy! That's it!" Jack didn't know at all what to say, which was strange for him since he always had something to say. All he could think of was "Don't hurt yerself" and "Don't die an' leave me ta raise Nathan an' this baby by meself" but that didn't sound very comforting.

With a moan and a sigh, Will collapsed against his chest, looking for all the world as if he was about to black out at any second.

"The head is out," the Doctor announced. "Just a few more pushes William."

"No!" Jack heard Will cry. The pirate felt his ears perk up at the word as he turned to glance in disbelief at the younger man's face. The poor lad was in tears from the sheer pain of the process and he was trembling in Jack's arms. "I can't do this! It's too hard!"

"Ye can do this darlin'," Jack said. "Ye're almost done."

"No!" he sobbed. "I can't! I can't!"

Jack frowned as he looked at the sobbing man in his arms. "Yes ye can," Jack said forcefully. "Will, ye're the strongest, bravest man I know. Ye can do anythin', an' all ye need ta do is give one more big push an' we'll have our baby."

Will nodded, still sobbing brokenly. "I love you Jack," he panted just as he gave his final push. Before they knew it, a loud wailing sound filled the room just as the blacksmith slumped back against Jack's chest, his body going completely limp.

"It's a girl!" the Doctor announced as he held the wailing newborn in the air.

"What does she look like Jack?" Will asked, his voice small as if he were far away.

Jack felt the tears pour from his eyes at the sight of the newborn baby girl. She was covered in blood, her skin was purple, her eyes were shut tight, her head was misshapen, and she was making the most awful sounds. "She's beautiful," Jack half sobbed. He gave a watery smile as he looked at the younger man lying limp in his arms. He never loved Will Turner more than he did at that very moment.


	32. Chapter 32

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean. Pirates of the Caribbean, its story and characters, is owned by Walt Disney Pictures.

**Chapter Thirty-Two**

"But I wanted a little _brother_, not a little _sister_," Nathan pouted as he looked at the sleeping newborn resting peacefully in Will's arms.

Jack and Will laughed warmly at their son's comment. "Sorry darling," Will chuckled, "but at least you still get to be a big brother."

"Oh Will," Elizabeth cooed as she rubbed the little girl's cheeks, "she's so beautiful."

Jack felt his chest expand with pride as a broad smile graced his lips. Everyone seemed to agreed that their baby was the prettiest thing any of them had ever seen. The little girl's head had gone back to a slightly normal shape and her skin was now a healthy shade of pink. Her pretty eyes were a soft chocolate brown with long lashes, her hair was black with soft curls, and her little lips were already full and red.

"Aye, that she is," Jack smiled as he ran his fingers over the girl's soft black hair.

"What's her name?" Nathan asked innocently.

"We haven't thought of one yet," Will shrugged.

"Alright everyone, clear out," the Doctor announced as he entered the hut. "Mr. Turner needs his rest."

"Fine then, I'll jus' take the baby fer a while," Jack offered as he carefully took the infant out of Will's arms. He smiled as the newborn curled up closer to him as he held her in his arms.

"Goodnight Daddy," Nathan said as he wrapped his arms around Will and placed a kiss on his father's cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too Nathan," Will replied, returning the hug and kiss.

As soon as they left the hut, Jack spotted Anamaria's crew gathered around the fire pit talking and chatting amongst themselves as they roasted what looked like wild boar over the open flames. Jack had asked Anamaria about the island and the female pirate had told him that it had all started when her men had liberated a ship full of slaves. Some of the men and women on board said that they had no desire to go back to their homeland, fearing that they might be captured again and turned into slaves anyway, so the pirate captain had welcomed them to her island and the people had made it their home. Seeing how well the island prospered under their care some of her men had asked if they could bring their own families to the island so that they wouldn't live in fear of anti-pirating laws. The island soon became much more than just a place to horde and hide treasure, it was now a home for outlaws and people seeking freedom.

"Jack," Anamaria called as she approached the other captain. Jack was surprised when he saw that she was holding a bottle in one hand and a basket full of goods in the other. "Here," she said as she handed him the bottle. "It's for the baby."

Jack frowned as he carefully took the bottle in hand. "Thank ye lass... err.. Captain," he said he examined the contents of the bottle. Not surprisingly, it was milk and Jack had a feeling that he knew exactly what type of milk it was. "This wouldn' be from yer own personal supply now would it?"

The woman frowned and Jack was surprised to feel Elizabeth slapping his back from behind. "It ain't mine," Anamaria half growled. "It's from the women. They wanted me ta give this ta you an' Will."

Jack motioned for Elizabeth to take the basket since he was currently busy holding his baby. The young woman did so, holding it in her arms so she could look through its content. Peeking over her shoulder, Jack saw that the basket was actually a bassinet for the baby to sleep and was in filled to the brim with baby goods. There were blankets, a pillow, toys, clothes, even little cloths and pins for diapers.

"Well, they certainly are a helpful bunch o' ladies," Jack mused as he began feeding the infant. "Elizabeth why don' ye go put those things away in the hut an' then take Nathan ta get some dinner."

"Can't I stay and help you with the baby, Papa Jack?" Nathan asked.

"Sorry son," he laughed. "Ye need ta go get dinner. I'll catch up with the two o' ye."

Nathan nodded reluctantly as he followed Elizabeth back towards the Doctor's hut.

Jack motioned for Anamaria to follow him as he began walking towards the beach. The moon was full tonight and the massive waves crashed onto the beach. "I 'ave a feelin' that these ladies are tryin' ta tell us somethin' with all these gifts."

Anamaria nodded. "They want Will an' the children ta stay here," she told him. "They're worried that you're gonna take Will and the children back onto the Pearl. They don' think it's safe for small children ta live on a pirate ship."

Jack laughed softly. It was ironic that these women Anamaria was talking about hadn't even met them, but they already seemed to think exactly like Will. Perhaps Will really did think like a woman? "Will had said the same thing ta me," he sighed, "but I doubt that he'll want ta stay here."

"An' why is dat?" Anamaria said, already starting to get offended.

"It's a pirate community luv," Jack said simply. "Will told me he wanted the children ta be raised somewhere... _normal_. I can try ta talk him into the idea o' stayin' here, but I dunno if he would go for it."

"Well, if he's as against the idea of takin' his children onto a pirate ship as the women here are, then he'll at least consider it."

-+-+-+-

"Stay here? On the island?" Will repeated sceptically. "I don't know about that, Jack."

"Why not?" Jack pushed. "It'll be a great place ta raise the children. The ladies here are more than helpful an' the men said they'd be willin' ta build ye yer own hut."

The truth of the matter was that Jack really did like the idea of Will and the children living here. Sure the homes left something to be desired and there weren't many opportunities for a blacksmith to find work, but he felt that it was a perfect fit for all of them. Will and the children would be safe and Jack would have easy access to them. Little Nathan had already made fast friends with some of the younger lads and since all the women had taken such a shine to Will, he could count on them to make sure that the stubborn young man didn't work himself to death.

"But they're pirates Jack," Will stressed. "I told you that I wanted the children to have options and not be forced into piracy."

"Not everyone here is a pirate, luv," he pointed out. "Besides, I'm sure havin' ye around would be such a help ta the community. Think of how much work ye'll get done here. You'll definitely be appreciated and well respected."

Will sighed as he looked over at their baby sleeping peacefully in her new bassinet. "I don't know, Jack. It just wouldn't feel right being here."

Jack pretended to pout as he sat down in the bunk that he had found for Will. "But this way I'll be able ta see all of ye as much as I want," he pointed out. "Don' ye want the children ta get ta know their Papa Jack?"

A weary sigh escaped the blacksmith's lips as he sat up straighter in his bunk. "It isn't normal!" Will argued. "That's all I want for the children, a chance at normality. Living here, in this place, with these people... I'd feel like I was giving them some sort of disadvantage."

The pirate frowned at the blacksmith's words. The young man always had been a stubborn fool so he hadn't expected him to make this easy. "Darlin'," Jack started as he held Will's hands in his. "I know that yer afraid, but ye don't have ta be. As long as the children are safe and loved then they'll be jus' fine."

Jack watched as the young man considered his words, his chocolate brown orbs filling with worry and uncertainty. "Alright," he said at last, "we'll stay for a few months, but if I still don't feel comfortable here than we'll find somewhere else."

Jack smiled as he leaned in to press a kiss onto Will's lips. "We have an accord," he said. "Now what 'bout our pretty little lass? Any thoughts on a name for her yet, because I've managed ta come up with a few."

The blacksmith sighed, rolling his eyes at the older man. "No Jack," Will said in exasperation, "we are not naming our daughter after your ship."

Jack frowned, pursing his lips in disappointment. "But Pearl is such a pretty name."

"It's the name of your _ship_," Will countered. "Our baby deserves a name that's unique and her own, not one taken from another person or _object_."

_This from a man who was named after his father!_ "I suppose that means 'Wilhemina' is out of the question?" Will frowned, not at all amused by the pirate's comment. _There's that hateful look I'd gotten so used to! Where have ye been these past few months, darlin'?_ "Well then, what d'ye want ta name the little lass?"

Will was silent as he took a moment to consider the name. "Rosemary," he said finally.

"Rosemary?" Jack repeated. He looked at the baby, smiling as he thought of her new name. "What d'ye think lass? Rosemary?"

The baby gurgled as her lip twitched upward in what appeared to be a smile.

"I think she approves," Will chuckled.

"Well then, Rosemary it is."

_**The End**_


End file.
